


Fruitful Encounter

by cherrylove



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Baker!Sansa, Domestic Violence, F/M, Farmer's Market AU, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Past Abuse, Past Rape/Non-con, Past Sexual Abuse, Single Dad!Jon, Triggers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-03
Updated: 2017-07-05
Packaged: 2018-04-07 10:24:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 27,219
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4259778
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cherrylove/pseuds/cherrylove
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Inspired by my lovely friend sansaandwinterfell's tumblr post about Farmer's Market Hot dudes.</p>
    </blockquote>





	1. Day 1: Apples and Peaches

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by my lovely friend sansaandwinterfell's tumblr post about Farmer's Market Hot dudes.

“What do you mean you don’t have any?” Sansa asked, putting a hand on her hip. 

“I just don’t have any Sansa. The apples weren’t ready and some mom with a mom’s-night-in planned bought all my peaches for what I can only assume is gallons of sangria. I’m sorry San,” Mya, her usual fruit vendor, apologized. 

“What am I supposed to do now? I have at least 6 peach pies and 3 dozen mini caramel apple tarts to make,” she sighed, her fingers twisting the ring on her right thumb anxiously.

“Well, I guess you could always try another vendor…Jon always has quality produce,” Mya suggested. 

“Jon? Who is he?” she asked. Sansa on occasion helped Mya with the stand and she’d never once met a vendor named Jon. 

“He recently moved back to town to take care of his estranged father’s produce farm, Cornucopia Farms. Rhaegar’s wife didn’t like the farmer’s market so they only sold to corporations or well established stores, but Jon’s been setting up for a couple months now,” Mya explained. “Try him. He might have what you’re looking for.” 

She let out a huffy sigh and nodded, “Fine. I’ll see what he has to offer.” Sansa turned in the direction Mya pointed out to her and searched for the right sign. 

Five stands down and across, a banner across a grey tent read ‘Cornucopia Farms,’ Sansa worked her way around a couple eyeballing a tent from the middle of the sidewalk and a group of dark haired girls who appeared to be sisters to get to the booth she wanted. 

“Are you Jon?” she asked, and he started at her voice. For how busy the market was his booth had hardly been touched. The locals had already established their favorites. 

“Yeah, hi, I am” He stood and extended his hand to her. 

She took it hesitantly and gave it a gentle shake, “I’m Sansa. Uh, Mya sent me your way. I’m in need of a lot of fruit and she has nothing I need.” 

“Oh, well, I’m sure I can help you,” he said. “What are you in need of?” 

“I need 15 to 20 green apples and 25 to 30 peaches, depending on the size’ she explained. 

She watched as his eyes widenedb and he gave a glance behind him, “Well Sansa, it seems you are in luck today. I have plenty for you.” 

He rapped on the table twice and a little girl with curly black hair of about five crawled out from under it, crayon in hand. 

“Elyanna, if you could grab two of the big bags from the truck for this nice lady, it would be greatly appreciated,” he said, looking down at her. 

Elyanna tilted her head slightly, “Do I get an ice cream if I do?” 

“If you hurry,” he said. 

“Okay!” The little girl scurried past the opening at the back of the tent and up into a black truck that had its doors open and a big white dog lounging in it. Moments later, she was back, two sturdy, big bags in hand. 

“There you go daddy!” she smiled, a toothy grin.

“Thanks angel. You can go back to coloring now.” 

She disappeared beneath the table again and Sansa returned her attention to Jon, “She’s adorable.”

“Thanks. A handful too. She always manages to get that ice cream deal in somehow,” he said. 

He set a container of peaches and a container of apples down on the table between them, “Find the ones you like.” He handed over the bags and moved to sit back down on the wooden stool. 

Sansa picked through the fruit, finding only the best and largest pieces to buy. She filled her bags with what she needed and looked back up to find big blue eyes staring back at her. 

“Hi!” Elyanna said excitedly from her place on the stool. 

“Hello,” she said slowly, confusion clear in her voice. 

“Daddy went to give Ghost some water. He’ll be back in a minute. Your dress is pretty,” the young girl smiled. 

She looked down at the denim button-up sundress that she’d put on that morning and back to the little girl, “I like your dress too. Is green your favorite color?” 

She shook her head, “Nuh uh, purple is but daddy is sloooow at doing laundry so its still dirty from when I played in the mud.”  


Sansa smiled, “Purple is my favorite color too.”

“Really?!” 

A hand came to rest gently on top of Elyanna’s curls, “Alright Ely, let Miss Sansa and I finish up, okay?” 

She nodded and hopped down from the stool to sit in a small chair towards the back of the tent, coloring once again. 

Sansa pulled out her wallet and Jon named a price. She handed over the cash and he gave her the bags of fruit once she’d put away her change. 

“Thank you so much. You just saved my business for this week at least,” she smiled. 

“Glad to be of service,” he gave her a half-smile. 

Sansa returned the smile and turned to leave. 

“Bye Miss Sansa!” 

“Bye Miss Elyanna!” She called over her shoulder. 

Sansa smiled and waved to Mya as she walked by her stand, lifting the bags in a triumphant gesture. She got into her car and drove back to her bakery on Red Keep Lane and got to baking with her assistant and long-time friend, Myrcella. 

When they finished baking and everything was delivered, Sansa and Myrcella set about making the cookies, brownies and fruit danishes for the store. 

She let Myrcella go once everything was baked and set up on plates and in the case. She tied on her apron and moved to turn the sign over from close to open. She enjoyed her day in the bakery selling her baked goods and as she was closing up, the old-fashioned phone on the back counter began to ring. She picked it up and winced at the squeal that reached her ear, “Hey Marg.”

“Have you seen the comments section on the bakery’s website?” she asked. 

“No, I’ve been slammed pretty much all day,” she said, leaning her hip against the counter. “Why?” 

“Everyone is raving about the pies and tarts that were delivered and the fruit danishes. Is Mya growing her fruit in fields laced with cocaine?” 

Sansa rolled her eyes, “No, I actually got my fruit from a different stand, Cornucopia Farms. Mya was all out of green apples and peaches.” 

“Well I suggest maybe going back. You’ve had more comments and ratings today than usual,” Marg told her. 

“Maybe, but I can’t just dump Mya as my produce provider because of a chance day of better ratings,” she told her best friend. She glanced over to the retro yellow clock on the wall above her and cursed, “Shit Marg. I gotta go. I’m late for family dinner.” She slammed the phone down and rushed out of the front door with the closed sign swinging violently behind her.


	2. Day 2: Strawberries and Mangoes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jon gave her a half smile and a soft chuckle, “I do. Did someone buy all of Mya’s?” 
> 
> “Two someones today, but yes. I need a half dozen mangoes and four or five bushels of strawberries,” she told him.

“I know what you’re here for San, just like every Thursday, but I don’t have them. The head chef from Sunspear Kitchen just came and bought my mangoes for a new dish and a party their catering,” Mya told Sansa. 

Sansa huffed and crossed her arms over her chest, “Well what about the strawberries? Did Shae’s Cafe buy all of those?” Her eyes traced idly over the pricing menu on the table for Eyrie Produce Farm. 

The other girl shook her head, “Nope, that mom is back. She’s making strawberry mojitos tonight apparently.” She gestured to a regal blonde woman about Sansa’s mother’s age who was standing with a young man of about 16 near a stand that Sansa normally bought her aromatics from. 

“Of course she did…” she murmured. She stood there in front of Mya’s stand for several moments and glanced down the way at Cornucopia Farms’ stand. It was busy today than it was on Wednesday. 

She turned to Mya resolutely, “Well I’ll just have to go see if Jon has some then.” 

“I guess so,” Mya said, a smug smile on her face. 

“What is that look for?” 

“What look?” 

“The one you get when you think you’re up to something…” Sansa told her. 

Mya shook her head, “Nope. Not what I’m thinking at all.” 

Sansa rolled her eyes at Mya before she turned and headed to the grey canopied stand. She waited behind a young woman, maybe a year older than herself, who had a small black ferret on a leash and the longest, blondest hair she’d ever seen and a woman with hair a much deeper red than her own auburn locks. She waited and glanced at the time on her purple FitBit and bit the inside of her cheek. 

Myrcella’s fine. She’s handled the bakery on her own before...well not for this long, but she can do it. She’s totally capable. I left her well stocked on pastries and breads...it’ll be fine. Plus I need these fruits to fill my orders…Sansa thought to herself. 

When the women in front of her abandoned the stand with their produce in hand, she approached the table and gave a soft, slightly defeated smile to Jon, “Please tell me you have strawberries and mangoes…” 

Jon gave her a half smile and a soft chuckle, “I do. Did someone buy all of Mya’s?” 

“Two someones today, but yes. I need a half dozen mangoes and four or five baskets of strawberries,” she told him. 

“Miss Sansa!” exclaimed Elyanna, interrupting the beginning of Jon’s response as the five year old climbed onto the stool beside her father.

“Hi Elyanna, how are you today?” she asked, crouching down to the girl’s level. 

“Good! Daddy got me a new coloring book with ponies and bunnies and pigs in it! The pigs are my favorite! We just got one at the farm! Her name is Olivia,” the little girl explained. 

“That’s awesome. Maybe you can draw me a picture of your pig and give it to me next time I come by the stand,” she suggested. 

“Yeah! I’m gonna go start now,” she gave Sansa a bright smile and scurried off the stool towards her chair in the back. 

“Thank you,” he said softly, putting baskets of strawberries onto the table. 

“No problem. I was the second oldest growing up and after Bran and Rickon were born, I took on a bit more of a motherly role,” she explained, “Kids are easy after them. Rickon is just as wild as a wolf as my father likes to say and Bran is...an enigma all his own. He climbs like a monkey.” 

“Sounds like you had an eventful life growing up,” he said. 

She shrugged, “I suppose. Daddy’s a politician so he traveled a lot and my older brother was a varsity athlete and then he got married young so it was up to me to help Mama since Arya, my younger sister, follows her own beat most of the time.” 

Jon nodded thoughtfully as she picked through the berries. Once she had enough, Sansa smiled, “These look great Jon. I’m sure it’ll all be perfect for what I’m making.” 

Jon placed a bin of mangoes on the table as he placed the berries into a bag he pulled out from under the table, “I’m glad to be able to help again.” 

Sansa looked up at him briefly before turning her attention back to the mangoes. Once she’d finished picking out the ones she wanted he took them from her and placed them in reusable bag with handles. She gave him the cash for the fruit and shouldered the bag of mangoes before picking the bag of strawberries off the table. 

"Bye Elyanna! I'm looking forward to that picture the next time I see you," Sansa called to her. 

"It's gonna be the bestest!" Elyanna exclaimed, not looking up from her drawing. 

Sansa looked to Jon and gave him a sweet smile, "You and Ely should stop by the bakery sometime. Maybe try some of the stuff your fruit is going into?" 

Jon nodded, a teasingly pensive look on his face, "We might just have to do that." 

"You should. Have a nice day Jon," she turned, gave a wave and headed back to her car. 

She waved to Myrcella and greeted some customers as she made her way to the kitchen to make the strawberry-mango tarts for a 4th of July party Mrs. Olenna Tyrell was throwing, a pan of strawberry cheesecake bars for a bridal shower, and a batch of vanilla bean cupcakes with mango frosting for the store's pastry case. 

Sansa sent the tarts out for delivery, set the cheesecake bars in the chiller until tomorrow, and had Myrcella put the cupcakes out for display. She handed Myrcella the keys to close the shop that night and went with a cupcake in hand to meet Margaery for drinks to talk about the website and Jon. 

After leaving family dinner the night before, she'd called Margaery back and her first question had been about Jon and whether or not he was 'Farmer's Market Hot.' After insisting she had an early morning for several frustrating minutes, Margaery let Sansa go, but only after promising to meet her at her apartment for a night of wine and girl talk after work. 

Sansa wasn't sure what Margaery thought was between her and Jon, but her best friend apparently thought something more than produce vendor and customer relationship was going on or she wouldn't have insisted on the girl's night. Nothing was going on, but it was going to be tough to prove that to Margaery if history was anything to go by.


	3. Day 3: Guava and Starfruit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sansa chewed on the inside of her cheek, twisting the hammered silver ring on her thumb. She liked Jon and thought he was attractive. Elyanna was also a total sweetheart and adorable. Surely Jon wouldn't offer if he thought it was a bad idea.

Sansa re-tied the bow on her apron as she spoke with one of her regular customers about a cake for her son’s second birthday. She wrote down the woman’s number and the cake details on the order form, “I’ll have it ready around 12:30 or 1:00 day of. You can pay for it when you pick it up.” 

The woman nodded, took her copy of the order form and left the store. Sansa turned around and put the order form in the yellow binder on the back counter before moving to put more of the guava frosted vanilla cupcakes with lemon curd in the case. She heard the tinkling of the bells attached to the front door. 

“Welcome to Lemon Cakes Patisserie! I’ll be with you in just a moment,” she said as she took a tray of star fruit curd mini tarts topped with kiwi from the window as Myrcella passed them through. 

“Miss Sansa! I have your picture!” exclaimed a familiar tiny voice. 

Sansa turned around and smiled brightly, “Hello Miss Elyanna. Welcome to my little bakery. Give me just a moment and I’ll come take a look. While I put these away, do you want to pick out a cookie or a cupcake? If it’s okay with your dad that is.” 

Jon nodded, “Sure. Pick out something you want monkey.” He ruffled her curls before she moved to take a look at her options. 

Sansa placed the mini tarts on their plate and wrapped the rest, putting them with the other back stock pastries. She wiped her hands on her apron and watched the little girl peruse the cupcakes and cookies. 

“Can I have the purple one?” Elyanna asked. 

“The vanilla blueberry?” 

“Mhm,” she said with a decisive nod. 

Sansa pulled the cupcake from the case and placed it on a plate. 

“Myrcella, will you come watch the counter? I have some visitors,” she said. 

“Yeah! Of course.” Myrcella came out of the back tying on an apron and took Sansa’s place behind the counter. Sansa smiled and motioned Jon and Elyanna over to a table by the window. She set the cupcake down, sliding it across the table to the little girl. Elyanna tore the paper off from around the cupcake and began to eat it starting with the frosting. 

“I know I said you guys should come by, but there wasn’t a deadline on that invite. You could have waited some,” she told Jon. 

“Well Ely finished your picture and she was practically bouncing all day and when we didn’t see you at the market, she insisted we find you,” Jon explained. 

“Mya had the guava I needed this morning and I go half with Sunspear Kitchen on the starfruit when I need since they get it in every Friday,” Sansa told him. 

Jon shook his head, “No worries. You’ve bought plenty the last couple days and since you came by the stand on Wednesday, I’ve had a lot more business.” 

“I might have had Margaery, my college best friend, answer some comments on the website with your stand’s name in it,” Sansa told him, a blush coloring her cheeks. 

“She answered the comments?” Jon asked.

“Oh yeah, she handles all the online stuff. I swore after college I’d never touch another computer unless it was for Netflix or online shopping,” she told him.

“One too many essays and research papers?” 

“Something like that. I was a culinary major with a minor in business so I was either memorizing and writing recipe cards or researching business plans and economics. If I even open a word document I get a little twitchy,” she told him

He laughed and she felt her stomach flutter. His laugh was amazing. It was warm and genuine. She smiled softly and looked down at her pastel yellow painted nails. 

“Well I’m glad we decided to come. The place looks great and Ely is clearly enjoying her cupcake,” Jon said. 

Sansa looked to Elyanna whose lips were smeared with blueberry frosting, “I’m glad. That happens to be one of my most popular cupcakes with kids. Parents love that it has real fruit in it.”

Jon nodded, “I can understand that. If Elyanna didn’t like fruit so much, I’m sure I’d be desperate to find ways to get her to eat fruit.” 

“You’d be surprised at just how creative you can get when it comes to vegetables and fruits. Rickon hated vegetables growing up so we made mashed potatoes with parsnip, or cauliflower to get vegetables in him. We even made a spaghetti sauce with spinach and carrots in it to get in more vegetable content,” Sansa told him. 

“Sounds like you were a master chef from a young age Sansa Stark,” Jon said. 

Another blush flooded her cheeks and she returned her attention to her nail polish, “I’ve always been good in a kitchen. I guess Mama just got me involved early and when Robb got married and left home, I was left in charge when Mama had to go be with Daddy so I had to learn how to cook and Food network was this girl’s best friend after that.” 

“Well it seems to have taught you well,” he gave her a smile and turned to Elyanna, “You done with your cupcake, Ely?” 

Ely looked up from a clean plate and smiled, “Yup!” 

“You have a bathroom I can use to her face and hands washed up?” he asked her. 

“Yeah,” she pointed behind him to a door with “les toilettes” painted in neat cursive on the door. 

“Thanks,” he said as he helped his daughter carefully down from the chair and led her to the bathroom. 

Once the bathroom door was shut, Sansa looked over to Myrcella who was just finishing up with a customer and mouthed ‘Not one word’ to her.

‘Who? Me?’ she mouthed back, pointing a finger at her own chest and an appalled look on her face, ‘Never.’

She rolled her eyes in response and made a zipper motion over her lips before pulling her phone out of her apron pocket and scrolling through her emails. She heard the door open and looked up to see Elyanna racing back towards the table. She scrambled up into the chair and pulled a piece of paper from her backpack. 

“It’s your picture Miss Sansa!” she explained, holding out the paper to her. 

Sansa took it with a smile on her face, “Thank you sweetheart. I can’t wait to see how beautiful it is.” 

She looked down at the picture and looked over the small pink pig with a red bow behind a fence. Next to the fence was a white dog and beside the dog was a small person with black hair, who could only be Elyanna. Standing next to picture Elyanna was a taller woman with red hair. 

"Who's the woman next to you?" she asked. 

"It's you Miss Sansa," she told her, a bright smile on her face. She looked expectantly to her Dad. 

"Ely wanted me to invite you out to the farm for dinner and to meet Olivia and Ghost," he told her, hesitation clear in his voice. 

"Ghost is our dog," Elyanna elaborated. 

Sansa chewed on the inside of her cheek, twisting the hammered silver ring on her thumb. She liked Jon and thought he was attractive. Elyanna was also a total sweetheart and adorable. Surely Jon wouldn't offer if he thought it was a bad idea. She bit her tongue and let out a soft sigh, "I don't know. I'm about to enter into my busy season and it's just Myrcella and I here..."

"It's an open invitation, don't feel obligated to come anytime soon," he told her gently. 

She nodded, "Thank you. I'll keep that in mind."

"No thanks needed. Elyanna enjoys your company and she's pretty picky," Jon told her. 

She smiled softly and blushed, "Well I'm honored."

“We should go. I’m sure Ghost is getting antsy back at the farm,” he said, standing and helping Elyanna put on her backpack. 

Sansa stood from the table and smiled softly, “Thank you guys for visiting. It was nice seeing you. Both of you.” 

Elyanna smiled up at her brightly and moved towards her. Soon her tiny arms were wrapped around Sansa’s legs and all she could think to do was rub the little girl’s back gently. 

She released her legs and looked up at her again, “Thank you for the cupcake Miss Sansa and I’m glad you liked the drawing.” 

“I loved it. Thank you for drawing it for me. I’m going to go home and put it up on my fridge after work.”

Ely clapped excitedly and Jon ruffled her hair. 

“It was good to see you Sansa.”

“You too.” 

She walked them to the door and opened it for them. He led Elyanna to the car and lifted her into the truck. She saw Sansa waiting in the door and waved as Jon buckled her in. She disappeared as the door closed and Jon went around to the other side of the truck. He waved over the truck and got into the truck. He pulled off from the curb and Sansa turned to walk back to the kitchen. 

“You have the front Myrcella? I want to work on some cakes for a bit,” Sansa explained. 

“Yeah. Of course boss,” the younger girl agreed. 

Sansa slipped into the kitchen and washed her hands at the back sink. She chewed her lip for a moment. There was obvious comfort between the three of them. Elyanna seemed to be comfortable with her and Jon was really sweet and seemed like a great dad. 

She dried off her hands and made her way over to a table to roll out a sheet of grey and white marbled fondant for a groom’s cake she had in the chiller. She worked it until it was flat and thin enough. She laid it over the square cake and smoothed it so there were no wrinkles before cutting off the excess. She worked for awhile shaping glasses and bottle out of modeling chocolate and covering them in various colors and shades of fondant. The groom was a bartender and wanted a bar themed style groom’s cake. She stepped back and looked over the placement of the bottles, glasses, and the martini shaker before moving back to the roller to work on a wood grain design for the side of the cake. 

Once she’d finished and put the cake back in the chiller, her head wasn’t as muddled. She worked on pulling out the square tiers for a graduation cake out of the chiller. She set about working on it and by the time Myrcella came back to let her know that the front was closed down. She took the keys from the younger girl and slipped them in her apron pocket before beginning her clean up. 

When Sansa left the bakery that night, the only thing on her mind was her cakes and the pastries she needed to make tomorrow after she got back from the market.


	4. Day 4: Blueberries and Lemons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Did something happen with you and Jon to make you avoid him?” she asked. 
> 
> “No and I’m not avoiding him. I’m headed there now to get blueberries,” Sansa countered. 
> 
> “Is that why you sequestered yourself in the kitchen making cakes while Myrcella ran the front of the store?” Mya asked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...I hope this is okay guys...I like it, but I hope you guys do too!

Sansa stood in front of Mya’s stand picking through lemons to find ones in the size she needed for the mini lavender pound cakes with lemon glaze that she was making for a bridal shower today. 

“Why didn’t you just get these from Jon since I don’t have the blueberries you need? I’m sure he has lemons too,” her friend said as she pulled her short locks into a ponytail. 

“Because I figured I could get them from you and continue being a loyal friend and patron,” Sansa said defensively. 

“Right because I wouldn’t know that if you didn’t buy my fruit…” Mya deadpanned. 

“Exactly.” 

Sansa finished picking out the lemons she needed and paid Mya. They’d finished the business part of her visit quietly, but she wasn’t letting Sansa get away that easily. 

“Did something happen with you and Jon to make you avoid him?” she asked. 

“No and I’m not avoiding him. I’m headed there now to get blueberries,” Sansa countered. 

“Is that why you sequestered yourself in the kitchen making cakes while Myrcella ran the front of the store?” Mya asked. 

“How...that little traitor…” she murmured. 

“We all know rolling fondant and making decorations for cakes is how you process things you don’t really understand. It’s not a secret San.”

“Well...the cakes just needed to be done. It has nothing to do with Jon and Elyanna’s visit to the bakery, okay?” 

“Okay San. I’ll see you tonight for girl’s night.”

Margaery, Mya, Myrcella, Arianne, and Sansa all made a point to go out and have a girl’s night every Saturday. 

“Yeah, see you then. We’re meeting at Arianne’s right?” 

“Yup, she insisted as usual since Summerhall is closer to her place than yours is,” Mya told her. 

Sansa smiled and waved goodbye before making her way to Jon’s stand. She stood waiting behind a woman approximately Jon’s aged dressed all in white. She had long, lovely blonde hair and she radiated an easy elegance Sansa hasn’t seen since she was a debutante. The woman purchased a couple pints of strawberries and raspberries and paid. She said something Sansa didn’t quite catch but when she stepped forward, Jon was blushing from ear to ear. 

She perused the pints of blueberries for several moments while he recomposed himself. 

“Hey Sansa, blueberries today?” he asked. 

“Yeah, I make lemon and blueberry cheesecake bars on Saturdays along with a blueberry mini pie,” she told him, “Plus I need to make more vanilla blueberry cupcakes.” 

“Ely couldn’t stop talking about that cupcake after we left. She’s a pretty big fan,” Jon told her. 

“I’m glad she enjoyed it,” she smiled. 

“So do all of your pastries have fruit in them?” he asked. 

“Oh no. Most of the stuff I sell in the bakery does, but we do make regular cookies and brownies and things like that. Also, we do cakes so those typically don’t have any fruit in them,” she explained. “I actually just finished a groom’s cake yesterday night after you left the bakery.”

“You are a very talented woman Sansa Stark,” he mused. 

She blushed and averted her eyes from his. She took a look around the stand and noticed that Elyanna’s chair was missing. 

“Where’s Ely?” she asked. 

“Oh, she’s with my sister Rhaenys. The guys insisted I let them take me out for drinks tonight which means I will be holed up at my brother’s bar all night,” Jon told her. 

“You don’t sound too thrilled about the prospect of a night out with the guys.” 

“If we were going to The Wall, maybe, but we’re going to Summerhall and it’s a little more club than bar.”

“Really? That’s where the girls and I go sometimes on Saturday nights,” she told him.  
“Yeah?”

“Mhm, it’s close to my friend Arianne’s place and she always hosts when she’s in town. She’s a model and always traveling so she insists on hosting when she’s in town. Normally we go to Maegor’s Holdfast near my place,” she told him. 

“Well I’m sure Aegon will enjoy having you ladies at his bar,” he smiled. 

She smiled and picked up four pints of blueberries, “This should be enough for me.” 

He nodded, “Alright.”

They finished off the transaction and she put the blueberries in the basket she brought. 

“Well I have to go get some fresh lavender from Roz’s stand. Maybe I’ll see you tonight?” 

“Maybe. Have a nice day Sansa,” he said, giving her a half smile. 

“You too Jon,” she turned and went to buy her lavender. 

Later that night Sansa and Myrcella closed up the bakery a little early and piled into Sansa’s car with their overnight bags to drive over to Arianne’s. 

Margaery greeted them with cheek kisses and glasses of red wine, telling her that Arianne and Mya were fighting with Mya’s eyeliner. Myrcella and Sansa made their way to Arianne’s bedroom to get ready. Margaery plugged her phone into the dock on the nightstand and turned up the music while they got dressed. 

Sansa shimmied into a pair of black skinny jeans and a lilac off the shoulder top. She braid her hair so that it was fitted top her head like a crown and interspersed little bobby pins with pearls at the end inside the braid. She put on pearl earrings and put on her favorite pair of nude pumps. She shared the mirror with Myrcella to do her make up which she kept light and natural with a bold lip. 

She grabbed the small crossbody bag she packed for the night and sat on the bed, finishing her wine and putting what she needed in the smaller purse. 

Once everyone was finished, they pooled money and caught a cab to Summerhall in front of Arianne’s apartment. The girls paid the driver and piled out of the cab in front of Summerhall. Margaery led the pack into the bar and up to the bar. Sansa couldn’t help but scan the bar for Jon. 

“Who you looking for?” Arianne asked, leaning in close to her.  


“Oh, um, no one particular. Just checking things out,” she told her. 

“Come on Sansa. I’m not Marg or Mya. Talk to me,” she insisted. 

“Well, Summerhall is owned by Aegon Targaryen and I met his half-brother Jon Snow at the market. He said he and some of his friends were going to be here tonight so...I was just looking to see if he was here so I could say hello,” Sansa explained. 

“Is he cute?” Arianne asked. 

A flush spread across her cheeks and she nodded, “He’s unfairly attractive for someone who wears so much plaid.” 

Arianne laughed, “Well it’s good that he’s cute, but is he nice is the most important question.”

“He’s super sweet and just an amazing guy as far as I can tell. He has a little girl and he is just so incredible with her and she clearly adores him,” Sansa said. 

Arianne smiled, “He sounds fantastic Sansa.” 

“I just don’t know. There’s obvious chemistry between us and his daughter likes me, I guess I just don’t want to rush into anything,” she told her. 

“Then don’t. Be friends, get to know each other, maybe hang out without his daughter some time and see where things go.” 

Sansa smiled at Arianne and hugged her, “You are the best. Why can’t you be here more often?”

“I wish. Maybe soon,” she said, “I’ve been thinking that walking runways is getting a little boring. I might help Uncle Oberyn at Sunspear Kitchens.” 

“He’d love to have you,” she told her. “He’s always asking about you.” 

Arianne smiled in response and took the cosmo that Margaery handed her. Sansa took her blackberry mojito from Mya and took a sip through the straw and smiled softly. 

“Let’s go find a table,” she suggested. 

The girls nodded and she weaved through the people towards the high top tables, one of her hands linked with Margaery’s. She found a table for them and slid an extra stool over from an empty table for Myrcella. She sat down and crossed her ankles. 

They talked about work and their love lives. Margaery was sleeping with the new girl at her web design firm. Mya was in a pretty serious relationship with one of the farm hands at Eyrie. Myrcella was engaged to Quentyn and they were in the midst of planning a huge wedding that Myrcella’s mother was basically taking over. Arianne and herself were the only ones who weren’t involved with someone. 

“Not true Sansa! You know you and Jon have something in the works,” Mya insisted, “My stand is not far enough from his that I didn’t see how tense you got when that blonde lady was at his stand today.”

“She was just taking a really long time…” she whispered. 

“So the tenseness had nothing to do with the fact that when she left, Jon had a bright heirloom tomato blush across his cheeks?” 

“Of course not.” 

Margaery looked to Mya and Myrcella looked at them both. Then all three of them burst into laughter. 

“Alright ladies, I get it, I amuse you all. Now give me a break,” she said, taking a long drink from her mojito. 

“The ladies teasing you Sansa?” asked a familiar male voice. 

Sansa stiffened and swallowed hard. She turned slowly and put on an uneasy smile, “Jon. Hi.” 

“Hello Sansa. The guys and I just got here and I saw you over here so I thought I’d come over and say hello,” he told her, taking a drink from his beer. 

“It’s, uh, it’s um good to see you. How’s your night going?” she asked. 

“Pretty good. Rhaenys hasn’t called with a screaming Elyanna yet, so it’s progress. My sister and my five year old tend to bump heads,” Jon told her, amusement clear in his voice. 

Sansa smiled and laughed softly, “Sounds like an entertaining pair.”

Jon nodded and looked over his shoulder at the bar, “My brother is waving me back over so I should get back. Will you be at the market tomorrow?”

“Um, no actually. I have a wedding to set a cake up for tomorrow morning and then I’m watching my nephew so my brother and his wife can have a date night. I’ll be there Monday morning though…” 

Jon nodded, “Alright. I’ll see you Monday morning.” He turned his attention from her and addressed the group, “Have a great night ladies.”

Sansa watched as he made his way back to a table with two other guys sitting at it as a man with longer, very blonde hair approached with a pitcher of beer and cold mugs. 

She sighed almost dreamily and turned herself back around. 

All of the girls were looking at her with raised eyebrows and smug smiles on their faces. 

“Oh shut up...all of you,” she muttered angrily into her drink.


	5. Day 6: Cherries and Oranges

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They worked quietly together to get everyone the fruit they wanted and broke down the stand, loading everything into his truck. She put her purse in the floorboard of the passenger side and then climbed into the seat. She looked down at her worn, dark jeans and the dark brown boots they were tucked into; she was glad she wasn’t in her usual uniform of a sundress and heels. It wouldn’t be very convenient for walking through the farm and perhaps climbing to pick oranges.

“I don’t have any oranges either Sansa. Sorry,” Jon told her, an apologetic look on his face. 

“Really? None? Not even like one you brought for yourself?” she asked desperately. 

“Nope. The guys were just going out to pick them when I was leaving to come out here.” 

She sighed, “I really need those for my orange buttercream frosted chocolate cupcakes…I guess I could go to the grocery store…” 

Jon was quiet for several moments, “I don’t have Ely today, she’s with her mom. I could take you out to the farm to get them. If you have time that is.” 

Sansa glanced down at her watch, “Yeah, just let me make a call first.” 

She fished her phone out of her purse and dialed her younger sister’s number. 

“Arya, it’s Sansa...do you have anything major planned for today?...No. Awesome. Do you think you could go run the front of the bakery so Myrcella can do the baking today?...I have some errands to run that’ll keep me out of the bakery...Thank you so much. I’ll totally pay you for your time. I’ll let Myrcella know to expect you.” 

Sansa hung up and tapped out a quick text to Myrcella. She looked up to Jon, who was finishing up with a customer. 

Once the muscular man with blue hair was walking from the stand, she spoke, “So my sister is going to help my assistant with the shop. I can help you here until you’re ready to go.”

“You don’t have to do that Sansa,” he said. 

“No, I don’t, but I want to,” she smiled and stepped around the table to stand next to him, “What do you want me to do, boss man?” she asked teasingly. 

Jon chuckled and gave her a half-smile, “You could bag fruit for me if you really need something to do.” 

Sansa sat her purse down on the chair behind them and let her light olive green vest join it, “I would be delighted.”

They worked quietly together to get everyone the fruit they wanted and broke down the stand, loading everything into his truck. She put her purse in the floorboard of the passenger side and then climbed into the seat. She looked down at her worn, dark jeans and the dark brown boots they were tucked into; she was glad she wasn’t in her usual uniform of a sundress and heels. It wouldn’t be very convenient for walking through the farm and perhaps climbing to pick oranges. 

Jon got into the driver’s seat and started up the truck, “Ready to go?” 

She nodded, “Ready when you are.” 

Jon put the truck into gear and drove off from where they were pulled in and headed south of town. They talked about their weekends and the benefit of having as large of a farmer’s market as they do in their town. 

“Where I lived before had a much smaller market for fresh produce and the farm I was at there was just not getting the business we needed to stay productive. I wish I could have stayed, but when my father asked me to come run the farm and it gave me an opportunity to be closer to Elyanna...it was too good to pass up,” Jon told her.

“I went to Vale College in middle of farm country so they really ingrained usage of fresh produce in anything we cooked or baked,” Sansa said. She looked out the window of the truck and smiled as she saw fields coming up on either side of them. 

“Why did you open a bakery instead of finding a restaurant to work in or opening your own?” he asked. 

She shrugged, “Honestly. Sometimes I’m not sure. Only doing baked goods feels a little dangerous, but I guess I love finding new ways to incorporate fruit into baking. It’s really easy to make something fruit or vegetable related as a chef, but I have to do a little more inventive thinking as a baker.” 

“It’s more of a challenge then,” he said. 

“Yeah. I think that’s the best way to put it,” she told him. “Plus, sweets are what I started with. My mom started me on cookies when I turned eight. Did you always want to be a produce farmer?” 

Jon shook his head, “No. I was a firefighter before this and my chief owned a farm. I would help him out during the summers when I wasn’t on shift and I’d grown up vaguely knowing about my father’s produce farm from letters. I’d always been fascinated, but it wasn’t until I was on the farm up north that I wanted to be a farmer.” 

She nodded and the farm appeared before them as Jon turned onto a dirt road. She took in the vast areas of green fields and tall trees. She could tell they grew a vast variety of produce from the immense amounts of grids breaking up the acreage. 

“This is amazing. Do your father and stepmother still live here?” she asked. 

“No. They moved into a condo in the city when my father handed over the farm, but my sister does live in the attached house near the barn. She takes care of the horses and house stuff while she’s finishing up her degree,” Jon explained. 

“What is she getting her degree in?” 

“Finance and business. I’m hopeless at that stuff. Just good with the produce.” 

Sansa laughed softly and opened the door once the truck came to a stop. She was greeted by a big white dog that could only be Ghost and a smaller, golden labrador puppy.

“Ghost! Visenya! Cut it out,” Jon demanded. 

Ghost immediately bounded away to the porch, but Visenya gave two defiant barks before giving in to Jon’s stern orders. 

She laughed softly and looked to Jon, “They’re quite a pair.” 

Jon gave her a half-smile, “Yeah. Ghost I’ve had since I was 19 and Rhaenys just got Visenya a couple months ago, they’ve been best buds since.” 

Sansa stood next to the truck and scuffed her boots against the gravel. She looked around the farm and let her eyes trace over the massive main house. She turned back to Jon, “So...how about those oranges?” 

Jon nodded, “Right. Sorry. Follow me.” He led her around the truck and down a path towards tall trees dotted with orange on the left side of the house. “So these are the orange trees,” gesturing widely to the trees. “Let’s see if Grenn has some oranges down or if we need to pick some ourselves. Come on, he should be towards the back.” 

Jon led her through rows of neatly organized trees towards the sounds of men and the soft rumble of a truck. They stepped through another row and stood behind several well built men in muscle shirts or no shirts at all. Sansa felt a flush rise to her cheeks and turned to look at the truck, which was loaded with several crates of oranges. 

“Oh thank god…” she murmured, subconsciously headed towards the truck. She stopped when she felt a hand on her wrist. 

She smiled shyly, “Sorry. I got excited.”   
Jon chuckled, “Don’t worry about it.” His hand slipped into hers and he led her through the group of men to a man with brown hair. “Hey Grenn. You think I could get my friend here up in the truck bed to get some oranges.” 

“Yeah sure thing Jon,” the man smiled. 

He walked around to the back of the truck and Jon helped her up into the back of truck and then hopped up behind her. Sansa walked over to the crates of oranges and took the bag Jon handed her. 

She picked out a half bag worth of large-ish oranges and turned to smile, “Thank you Jon. I really appreciate it. I’m going to have to stay up super late to get all my pastries done, but thanks to you I’ll be able to make them.” 

Jon hopped down from the back of the truck, took the bag of oranges, and then helped her down.

Jon said goodbye to the men picking the oranges and led her back towards the truck. They walked in silence and weaving through the rows of trees with the bag of oranges swinging between them. 

They reached the truck and stood beside it for several long moments, Sansa shuffling in the gravel driveway and Jon watching her carefully. 

Jon cleared his throat and she looked up from the gravel, “Would you...um, have you eaten yet?” 

Sansa swallowed and shook her head, “No. I went straight from opening the bakery with Myrcella to the market.” 

“Well, do you want to have lunch? It’ll just be sandwiches, but it’s better than nothing right?” 

Sansa thought about it for several moments and shuffled her feet before nodding, “Yeah. That actually sounds great.” 

Jon led her up the stairs of the front porch and into the house. The dogs followed them in and he led her through the house to an open kitchen. 

“Rhaenys, I would have thought you would be in the barn carriage house,” Jon said, moving around the kitchen counter. He pulled the young woman with tanned skin and flowing chestnut hair in for a hug. 

Jon and his sister were almost physical opposites. He was decidedly paler and steel grey eyes, while she was dark skin and light blue-violet eyes. She smiled and sat down on one of the chairs at the counter. 

“I thought I’d make you an actual lunch, little brother,” the girl teased, bumping his hip with hers. 

Jon chuckled, “Is there enough for a guest, big sister?”

Rhaenys looked up, taking in Sansa’s presence, “Oh my goodness! Hello! Hi! So sorry.” She turned to Jon, “Of course I do. You know I always make more than need be. Now sit. I made a chopped salad, grilled chicken in an apricot sauce, and asparagus in butter and garlic.” 

Jon chuckled and sat down next to Sansa, “You never do anything in halves, do you?” 

She laughed, “Not in my nature and you know it.” 

They talked about the farm, his sister’s classes, and Sansa’s bakery while Rhaenys finished up lunch. She plated food for the three of them and joined Sansa and Jon to eat lunch. They continued to talk about mutual interests and joked as they all worked together to clean up from lunch. 

“Thank you for lunch Rhaenys, it was delicious,” Sansa said, hugging the older girl. 

Rhaenys returned the hug and nodded, “Anytime. Well I’m going to go and tend to the horses. I hope to see you around, darling.” She left the house from the door off the kitchen and closed it tightly behind her. 

Jon and Sansa made their way out to the truck. They listened to the radio and made casual small talk as he drove her to the bakery since Arya text her and let her know that she’d driven Sansa’s car back to the bakery. Jon parked the truck in a spot in front of her car and Sansa got out of the truck. She grabbed the bag of oranges and her basket of cherries. 

She met Jon around the side of the truck and smiled softly, “Again, thank you. I can’t even explain how much you saved my life today.” 

Jon smiled, “It was no big deal Sansa. It was my pleasure. Thank you for having lunch with me and my sister.” 

“Rhaenys is a complete sweetheart and so funny. It wasn’t exactly torture. You two make for great company.” 

A flush rose to his cheeks, “Well you’re pretty great company too.” 

Sansa bit the inside of her cheek, thinking for a few moments. She looked at him, meeting his eyes and stepped a little closer, “Jon…” 

“Yeah?” he asked, stepping towards her. 

“Is it…” she started. 

Sansa, who was typically more of a words instead of an action girl, chose action this time and placed a hand on Jon’s cheek and pressed her lips to his, kissing him cautiously. 

Jon’s hand found her waist and his lips moved gently against hers. Sansa pulled away and felt her cheeks turn red, “Wow...um.”

“So that happened…” he murmured. 

Sansa laughed softly, “That it did.” Her blue eyes met his grey ones and there was a comfortable silence between them that was broken by the ding of her phone. She pulled her phone from her vest pocket and checked the time. 

“Oh shit...I really need to get to baking if I want my pastries ready in time for delivery tomorrow...I, um, I’ll see you tomorrow morning?” she asked. 

Jon nodded, “Yeah. Of course. I look forward to it.” He kissed her cheek and got back into his truck, but didn’t leave until she was in the bakery. 

Sansa watched him drive off and once he was too far down the road to see anymore, she turned and leaned her back against the door. 

“Holy shit...I just kissed Jon Snow...Holy fuck! I kissed my produce provider!” 

She made her way to the way to the kitchen, whispering curse words to herself the entire way.


	6. Day 27: Honeydew and Pomegranate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He smiled and the grin faded slowly from his face, "So I've been seeing a lot of Myrcella the last month..."

Following Sansa’s trip to Cornucopia Farm’s, she buried herself once again in baking for birthday parties and weddings. She started sending Myrcella to the market with a detailed list so she could avoid having to face Jon after their kiss. She even picked up a catering job and dragged Rickon, Meera, Bran’s girlfriend, and Mya into helping her. The catering job went well and caused a pick up in business that Sansa was not going to complain about.

Tonight, Sansa was working a wedding that she was contracted to cater at the last minute. She was putting out more vanilla cupcakes with a pomegranate filling and a chocolate icing on a stand below. She’d made a cake out of the same ingredients for the cake cutting. She looked to where Myrcella was laying out the honeydew-raspberry margarita cookies that they’d modeled after the couple’s signature drink. 

“Sansa?” 

Her eyes widened and she swallowed hard as she placed the final cupcake down. She turned around, smoothing the skirt of her dress, “Hello Jon.” 

“You’re doing catering?” he asked. 

She nodded, “Yeah. I got a request for a bridal party last week and I found that catering was a nice addition. I know I mostly bake, but I did go to culinary school so cooking isn’t exactly out of my wheelhouse…”

Jon gave her a half-smile, “I don’t doubt that. The fish was great. I don’t think I’ve ever had fish that wasn’t dry at a wedding until tonight.”

She smiled back, a light pink flushing her cheeks, “Thank you. I’m just glad everything came together...I only had about a week to fully flesh out the menu…” 

“It was fantastic Sansa.” 

She looked down at the nude pumps on her feet and bit the inside of her cheek, “So how do you know the lovely couple?”

“Oh, the bride is one of Rhaenys’ sorority sisters and she didn’t want to come by herself, so here I am,” Jon shrugged. 

“Look at you, being a good big brother and stuff,” she teased. 

He smiled and the grin faded slowly from his face, "So I've been seeing a lot of Myrcella the last couple weeks..."

She swallowed hard and reached out to straighten a fork on the table. She really wished she had a better answer for him, but there wasn't one really. She was like a scared animal that spooked too easily. She wanted the kiss and she wanted to spend more time with him. She wanted to really get to know his daughter and his sister and get to know more about Jon. 

She bit the inside of her cheek and looked up at him, "I'm sorry. I know I just kind of fell off the planet without a word. I scare easy and..." 

She caught Meera waving her down from across the room, "I am so sorry. I have to finish off dinner and desserts, but...what's your schedule look like tomorrow after the market?" 

“Rhaenys is taking Ely to the zoo and shopping for new shoes so I’m free after the market,” Jon told her. 

“I’m taking the day off after I go into the bakery to do some ordering, but maybe you could come have lunch at my place? We can talk.”

Jon glanced over his shoulder and nodded, “Yeah. Just text me.” 

She pulled a pen from her bun and a business card from her pocket, “I have to have it first.” 

He smiled at her and handed the card back to her. She tucked it back into the pocket of her dress, “I have to go see what Meera needs, but I’ll text you in the morning. I swear.”

She edged around him and made her way to where Meera was still waiting on her. She could feel his eyes on her as she walked away. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_I'm headed back to my apartment now. Just head over whenever you get done at the market._  
_~S_

Sansa stepped around Lady and moved into the kitchen to pull open her fridge. She pushed past the fruit and veggies to dig out chorizo, arugula, and alpujarra cheese. She pulled a loaf of sourdough from off the top of her fridge and began to prep for a fancy grilled cheese she created with Arianne the summer between high school and college when they were staying at her uncle’s house in Spain. 

She reached into the pantry and dug around for a bag of pita chips. She pulled out some chickpeas and everything else she needed to make a spiced hummus. She put everything she needed into the food processor and flipped the sandwiches when they were ready to flip. 

The buzzer rang and she jogged into the front room to answer it, “Hello?” 

“Sansa? It’s Jon. Will you buzz me in?” he asked. 

“Of course!” Sansa pressed the buzzer and when she heard the click of the door opening and then closing, she went back to the kitchen. 

She was setting the plates of food on the dining room table when a knock sounded on the door of her apartment. She moved towards it and pulled open the door, “Hey Jon. Come on in. I just finished making lunch. I thought we could eat and then sit down and talk about...well you know.”

“The kiss?” he asked, stepping into her apartment. 

“Yeah, that,” she said, smiling awkwardly, “You can follow me this way to the food.” 

Sansa turned and walked further into the apartment, leading him towards their lunch. She stopped beside the chair, “So, what would you like to drink? I have juice, beer, wine and water.” 

“A beer would be great actually,” Jon told her, tucking his hands in his pockets. 

She nodded and turned to go get drinks. She grabbed a beer and her last hard root beer from the fridge and opened them. She handed the beer to Jon and took a seat at the table. 

“So, I made semi-fancy grilled cheese and a spiced hummus to go with the pita chips. Nothing too crazy, but delicious none the less,” she told him.

“It smells delicious. What’s in the grilled cheese?” he asked. 

“It’s a chorizo, arugula, and alpujarra grilled cheese,” she told him. “One of my friends and I came up with this recipe one summer.”

His brow furrowed, “I’ve never heard of that cheese…”

“It’s a cheese from eastern Spain. Arianne’s uncle brings me back some every so often,” Sansa told him, “I’m a bit of a cheese snob. This one is creamy with a little bit of a peppery taste that will pair well with the arugula and chorizo.” 

Jon smiled, “Well it sounds delicious. Shall we?” 

She nodded and picked up her grilled cheese. They ate in relative silence besides some light conversation about the flirtation between Sam, the guy who was in charge of organizing for the farmers market, and Gilly, one of the girls who sold organic herbs and various types of flowers. 

When they finished lunch, Sansa carried the plates into the kitchen and led Jon into the living room. She sat down with one of her legs tucked beneath her and the other hanging off of the couch. Jon sits across the couch, facing her with Lady at his feet. 

“So I suppose I should explain why I haven't been at the market…” 

“Only if you want to Sansa. I'm sure you had your reasons.”

“I did. I want to. Explain that is…” she fiddled with the sterling silver ring on her thumb. “I, I’ve never liked someone with a kid before and you have the best produce I’ve seen in a really long time.” 

She looked up from her hands and then at him, “I freaked about the kiss because I’ve been avoiding how I feel about you for awhile. I just, I didn’t want to mess things up. I don’t have the best of track record when it comes to relationships.”

“I’m not perfect either Sansa. I’m divorced and my best relationship is with my five year old,” he told her. 

“I’ve had two failed engagements and a disaster of a relationship after that. It took me awhile to readjust to single life and you're so nice that I didn't want to risk anything,” she murmured. 

“I get that. I haven't really been on a date since Ygritte and I divorced. Maybe one or two blind dates that Rhaenys set me up on, but nothing serious,” he told her. “I like you though Sansa. A lot. You get along great with my daughter, you're funny, gorgeous and possibly one of the nicest people I know.” 

A blush spread across Sansa’s face and she bit the inside of her cheek, “I haven't met anyone in awhile that I was willing to take a chance on, but I'm scared that things are going to fall apart like every other time. I'm scared that I'm going to get hurt in all the ways I was before.” 

Jon was silent for several moments and her fingers worked the ring on her thumb as she watched his face. 

“Well, if there's one thing I learned from my divorce and having shared custody is that communication is important. Trust is too,” he said gently. 

She nodded, “I know. I want to work on that, but I'm going to need a little patience. Is that okay?” 

Jon reached over, taking her fidgety hands in his and stroked the backs of her hands with his thumbs, “That's perfectly fine as long as you can give some to me.” 

She nodded, “I can do that.” 

He gave her a warm smile and leaned in, pressing his lips lightly to hers. She leaned in and kissed him back. They separated, foreheads resting against each other briefly, and she moved in closer to him. He put an arm around her shoulders and leaned back against the couch, placing a kiss to the top of her head. 

“So Sansa Stark, what's your favorite movie?” he asked. 

She chewed her lip in thought, “Probably Sixteen Candles, I'm a sucker for a John Hughes movie.” 

“Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is probably my favorite John Hughes movie, but all time? I think I'd have to go with Casino Royale.” 

“A Bond movie? Really?” 

“Yeah. I've always been a big spy movie fan, but Casino Royale tops the cake for me.” 

She nodded, “Alright, favorite tv show?” 

“Hands down Criminal Minds. It's just so interesting and it's never boring even though it's been on forever,” he told her. “What about you?” 

“Well I think it'd have to be Grey’s Anatomy. I love a good medical drama…”

“Okay how about…”

Sansa and Jon stood from the couch and she walked with him to the door, Lady right on her heels. She grabbed the leash from the top the table next to the door and slipped on shoes. She clipped Lady’s leash on and Jon opened the door, gesturing for her to lead the way. 

They stepped outside of her apartment building and Lady turned in the direction of the green patch where Sansa walked her next to the building. She looked up at her impatiently when Sansa paused. 

“Thank you for coming over and having lunch,” she said. 

“Thanks for cooking, it really was delicious. I'm glad we got to talk too,” he told her, stepping closer to her. 

She nodded, “I am too. I'll see you tomorrow morning at the market?” 

“Of course. It'll just be me. Elyanna is off to her mom’s for the weekend,” he told her. 

She nodded, “I'll see you there.” 

“That you will.” 

“Okay.” 

He chuckled and closed the last few inches before kissing her. They kissed long and soft for several minutes before an agitated Lady huffed and started off to the grassy area. 

They both laughed softly as she started off with Lady, waving. He lifted a hand in goodbye and walked to his truck. 

Sansa stood with Lady as she did her business, “Way to ruin the moment princess…”


	7. Day 34: Plums and Figs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When he reached her, he leaned down and kissed her lightly. Lady whined in complaint when the kiss lingered for too long and she didn’t get a head scratch from him. They pulled away and after requisite head scratches and loading their bags and both dogs into the car, Sansa and Jon headed north to her family lake house.

“What are your plans for this weekend?” Sansa asked, still picking plums to buy. 

“Well Ygritte has Ely until Wednesday so not too much. I was going to catch up on some reading and help the guys out some in the fields, why?” Jon asked, handing change over to a customer. 

“Well my family is headed up to our lake house for the weekend for my younger brother and his fiance’s engagement party. The party is on Sunday, but we’re all headed up tomorrow…” Sansa told him. 

He smirked, “So you feel confident enough to bring me to meet the family?” 

She rolled her eyes playfully, “I think you’ll make a good impression. Plus the lake is nice and I thought it might be a good getaway.”

“I’d like that,” he smiled, leaning across the table to kiss her lightly.

“Myrcella is going to run the bakery for the last half of the day, so I can pick you up from your place if you want since that means I can leave the store early,” Sansa offered. 

“I'll be in town already so why don't I just come by your place and leave my truck there?” Jon asked. “You'd have to come south to get me and then all the way back through town.”

She nodded, “Alright. Also, I’m bringing Lady since all the dogs will be there if you want to bring Ghost. I’m sure he’ll have fun with our dogs.” 

Jon bagged the plums she’d picked and then passed over the bin of figs, “I think I’ll do that. I’m sure he’ll enjoy some time away from Visenya. She can be a little persistent when Ghost just wants to be left alone since she’s still a puppy.”

Sansa laughed softly and passed over a pint of figs, “I remember the puppy days well. My siblings and I all got our dogs from the same litter, so we had five puppies running around at once. Rickon was 6 when we got the dogs so there was the added energy of a typical six year old.” 

Jon sighed, “Ely is just a little ball of energy these days. It’s like the toddler years all over again.”

She smiled, “Enjoy it while it lasts though. Teenage years are even worse according to my parents.” 

His shoulders dropped and shook his head, “I’m trying not to think about everything the teen years is going to envolve.” 

Sansa reached over and patted his hand on top of the table, “It’ll be okay. She’s a good kid and you have lots of help and people who love her. I’m sure it won’t be any worse than it normally is.”

Jon chuckled, “I hope so.” 

He bagged the figs and handed the bag to her. She gave him the appropriate amount of cash and put the bag in her basket. 

“Well I’m going to head back to the bakery. Talk to you later tonight?” she asked.

“Yeah. I’ll definitely give you a call when I get home, but I’ll text you if it gets too boring here.” 

She smiled and leaned over the table to kiss him lightly, “Bye.”

He blushed slightly, “Bye.”

She laughed softly and turned to walk back to her car. She started her car up and drove off back to work. Sansa made the fig jam for the fig and vanilla bean thumbprint cookies while Myrcella peeled and cut up the plums to make a plum compote filling and plum frosting for the orange-vanilla cupcakes. 

Sansa mixed up the cookie dough for the thumbprint cookies and pressed the center in before getting them into the oven to bake. She left the fig jam to set and started on the orange-vanilla cupcake batter. She put those into the oven next and leaned against the counter, waiting on them to be done and Myrcella to finish the compote and frosting. 

She felt a buzz in her apron pocket and pulled out her iPhone. 

_So...what does one make with figs? The only thing I could think of with figs was Fig Newtons…_   
_J_

Sansa rolled her eyes. 

_Well, some of it is for a stuffing for a chicken that I’m stuffing with blue cheese and fig with a little bit of prosciutto that I’m making for the engagement party and the rest are for vanilla thumbprint cookies with a fig jam center that we’re making for a birthday party. They’ll get delivered later today._   
_~S_

She slipped her phone back into her apron pocket and went to pack up the things she’d need to take up to the lake with her in a cooler bag. She then took the cookies out of the oven and set them out on a cooling rack. She set the jam aside to cool and pulling the cupcake from the oven to set on a cooling rack as well. The front bell of the bakery tinkled and Myrcella turned off the mixer to go help the customer. Sansa continued working on finishing the pastries for the day and getting together the order binder so Myrcella wouldn’t have any issues filling the orders and would have more time to make sure Wylla, their new baker, was getting along okay with the recipes.

When they locked up for the night, Sansa waved goodbye to Myrcella and got into her car to drive home. She pulled her car into her usual space and went upstairs. Jon sent a text saying that he was exhausted and turning in early, but that he was looking forward to their road trip. She texted Robb so he could let their mom know she was bringing Jon before she went to bed. She slipped into bed for the night and drifted off into a comfortable sleep. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sansa glanced back at Myrcella, who was impatiently waving her on, before opening her car door. She sat down in the driver’s seat and sighed. Myrcella had been with Sansa since she opened the bakery, but leaving the bakery in the hands of someone else still made her nervous. The shop was her baby and every penny Sansa had after college got poured into getting equipment and buying the store front and decorating the store. It had to be successful and the control freak in her made leaving for an extended period of time more than little nerve wracking. 

Sansa drove home and pulled into her guest spot so that Jon could have her spot and grabbed the cooler with her supplies for dinner out of the passenger seat before heading up to her apartment. She changed into a baby blue sundress with a black sweater and her favorite black leather wedges. She grabbed her duffle bag from her bed and whistled for Lady. The grey and white Husky bounded over to the door and let Sansa put on her collar. She told Lady to sit before running her things down to her car. She grabbed the cooler, Lady’s leash and locked the door behind her. She got to her car just as Jon was pulling his truck into her usual spot. 

Sansa smiled softly, “Hey! I was getting worried you’d chickened out on me.” 

He chuckled and shook his head as he closed the door of his truck. Ghost stood beside him, waiting to see where Jon was going next. He slung his duffel bag over his shoulder and walked towards her, his grey eyes hidden by sunglasses, “Not a chance.” 

When he reached her, he leaned down and kissed her lightly. Lady whined in complaint when the kiss lingered for too long and she didn’t get a head scratch from him. They pulled away and after requisite head scratches and loading their bags and both dogs into the car, Sansa and Jon headed north to her family lake house. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I thought you said it was a house…” Jon murmured as Sansa pulled up the gravel drive that led up to the lake house.

“Well, it is. It’s just...a really big house,” Sansa told him, reaching over to pat his thigh gently. 

Winterfell Estate had been in Sansa’s family for a really long time. The Stark family name was synonymous with big oil and when they first hit big back in the day, her however many greats grandfather had Winterfell built for his wife. All the Starks since have been raised on the Estate. Now the large house housed her mother, father, and her youngest brother Rickon, who would be off to college this year. 

She pulled in behind Robb’s SUV and put her car in park. She glanced over at Jon, “You ready for this?” 

Jon nodded, “As I'm ever going to be.” 

She kissed him softly and gave his hand a reassuring squeeze before getting out of the car. She got Lady out and reached for the cooler and took a minute to think about how she was going to manage her bag. Jon’s hand wrapped around the handles of both their bags, “I got them.” 

She smiled, “I would have figured it out.” 

“I know, but let me be a gentleman?” 

She rolled her eyes playfully and led him up the front stairs to the door. She knocked and pushed the door open. Their only neighbors for several miles were the Umbers and the Howlands, who were long time family friends, so the door was hardly ever locked. 

“Mom! Dad! I'm here!” Sansa called out. 

Her answer wasn't either of her parents, but the sound of feet pounding down the stairs. She let Lady off her leash just as a little a little boy with unruly, auburn curls bounded off the last stair and ran towards her, “Aunt Sansa!!” 

“Monster!” She exclaimed back as he crashed into her legs. She kneeled down to hug him and press kisses to his head. 

“Alright Harrion, where's Gram and Poppa?” Sansa asked, standing up. 

“Gram’s in the kitchen yelling at Aunt Ary and Grandpa is with Momma and Daddy,” the auburn haired one said. 

The red haired boy blinked up at Jon, “Aunt Sansa, who's that?” 

Sansa laughed softly, “That's Jon, Harrion. Jon, this is Harrion, my nephew.” 

“Nice to meet you Harrion,” Jon said, holding his hand out to them. 

He shook his hand before turning his attention to Ghost. He was obsessed with dogs of all kinds so a new one to love on was always welcome. 

“Harrion! It's time to get ready for the boat ride,” called a feminine voice. 

Sansa’s sister-in-law, Alys, walked into the foyer, one hand on her rounded belly. She was 5 months pregnant with hers and Robb’s first girl. 

“Sansa! You made it! Harri, go on upstairs to find your uncle Rickon so he can help you with your suit.” 

Harrion gave Ghost one last pat before running off, almost running into the door jamb when he spared a glance backwards. 

Sansa laughed softly, “Robb’s taking everyone out?” 

“Well not everyone…” Alys said, “he's taking Harri, Jojen, and Rickon. I'm staying behind along with Meera to help your mother with dinner. Catelyn is all in a tizzy over your guest.” 

She glanced over Sansa’s shoulder and waved, “Hi. I'm Alys, Robb’s wife. I see you met our son, active one isn't he?” 

Jon nodded, “He is, but my daughter is the same way. I'm Jon by the way.” 

They shook hands and Alys smiled, “It's good to meet you Jon.” 

“You as well.” 

“I'm going to go back to the kitchen to help your Mom. I think Catelyn got your old room fixed up Sansa,” Alys said, turning and walking back to the kitchen. 

Sansa smiled, “Well that was my sister in law. Why don't we let the dogs out into the backyard and then we can go put our things down?”

“Sounds good to me.”

Sansa led him into the kitchen and to the back door. She opened the door and Lady rushed out to join Nymeria and Grey Wind, who were chasing after each other. Jon let Ghost off his leash and sent him outside.

She turned and set the cooler down next to the fridge. She stuck what she needed to into the fridge and turned to talk to a woman who looked like an older version of Sansa. 

“Jon this is my mother, Catelyn Stark. Mom, this is Jon Snow,” Sansa said, kissing her mom on the cheek. 

“It's nice to meet you Mrs. Stark,” Jon said with a polite smile. 

“You as well Jon. Sansa darling, did you guys get up to the room yet?” 

“Not yet Mom. We were just headed there.” 

“Okay, well let Osha or I know if you need anything. There should be towels for you.”

“Thanks Mom.” She gave her mom’s shoulder a squeeze before leading Jon out of the kitchen. 

He picked their bags up from the foyer floor, waiting for her to lead the way.

Sansa nodded to the stairs. “Follow me.”

She led him upstairs and down the right side of the hallway. They passed two doors and she pushed open the last door on the left, “My room. My room, Arya’s room and my dad’s study are on this end.” 

She stepped into the room, “I hope you don't mind sharing. My mom just kind of assumed we’d be okay with that.” 

Jon set down their bags near the closet and closed the door. He moved closer to her and pulled her gently to him. 

“It's perfectly okay with me,” He kissed her softly, “is it okay with you?”

Sansa smiled and kissed him back, “More than okay.”   
He kissed her again and she nipped his bottom lip gently before pulling back. She draped her arms over his shoulders, “Thank you for coming. Really. I’m so happy that you came with me and you’re going to get to meet my family.”

Jon presses a kiss to her forehead, “Of course. I’m nervous to meet them, but excited none the less.”

She smiled and kissed him one last time before pulling away from him. “Let’s head downstairs. I need to help Mom finish up with dinner.” 

They walked downstairs and into the kitchen where Sansa put on an apron and moved to the stove to work on the garlic butter sauce for the chicken cordon bleu her mom was working on. Alys handed a knife over to Jon and set him to work trimming asparagus for the side. 

Rickon and Harrion crashed through the kitchen and out the back door. Sansa watched as Rickon helped Harrion onto the boat at the end of the dock. She could just make out Robb at the wheel and Arya lounging on the seating area with a dark haired man beside her. She watched as the boat pulled off from the dock and out into the lake. 

She took the baking dish from her mom and poured the sauce she made over the chicken, putting it into the preheated oven. She showed Jon how to wash the asparagus and helped him sprinkle garlic powder, parmesan cheese and olive oil over the spears. They were sipping the baking sheet into the second oven when she heard her father’s voice. 

“Cat, did I see Sansa’s car outside?” Ned asked, walking into the kitchen, fiddling with the clasp of his watch. He set his briefcase down on an island chair, standing behind it as he struggled to get the watch off. 

“That’s my car Daddy,” Sansa said, moving around the island to hug him. 

“There’s my sunshine girl,” Ned said, wrapping her in a hug and pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “How long have you been home?” 

“Just about an hour. Jon and I are helping Mom and Alys with dinner while everyone else is on the boat.” 

“Ah yes, you brought someone with you. Do I get to meet him?” 

She laughed softly, “Of course Daddy.” 

Jon moved to where they stood, wiping his hands on a towel, “Hello Mr. Stark. Nice to meet you.”  
Ned shook his hand and gave him a nod, “Nice to meet you as well Jon. I’ve heard good things.” 

A blush flooded Sansa’s cheeks and she smiled, “You might have come up once or twice.”

Jon smiled and pulled her to his side before pressing a kiss to her temple, “I’d be concerned if I hadn’t.” 

He squeezed her side and returned to helping Cat. Sansa looked to Ned and smiled, “How was work Daddy?” 

“Work was as it always is at the office. He seems very nice Sansa.”

“Thanks Daddy. He is. He has a little girl and she’s the apple of his eye and she adores him,” Sansa told him. 

“Well I’ve always said children are the best judges of character,” Ned told her. He hugged her and pressed a kiss to the top of her head, “I’m going to go change out of this suit and do some work in the office. Send your mother my way once things are mostly done with dinner?” 

“Of course Daddy.” 

Sansa went to help Alys get a bowl down from a shelf for the salad. She told her mom that her dad wanted her in the office once they were in a good spot with making dinner. She pulled down plates and had Jon gather silverware before going to set the big dining room table that they used whenever the whole family’s together. 

As they worked to set the table to Catelyn Stark’s immaculate standards, the back door swung open and Arya and Harri crashed through as Rickon chased them into the house and towards the upstairs. Jojen and the dark-haired man she’d seen on the boat came in next, laughing and towel drying their hair. Robb walked in, pulling a shirt on and made his way to kiss Alys on the cheek. They talked quietly amongst themselves for several minutes before his attention turned to where Sansa was now standing closely to Jon and watching her brother. 

Robb smiled, “San! Are you going to introduce your big brother to your friend?” 

Sansa sighed and nodded, “In a second Robb. Help your wife with the serving dishes!” 

He chuckled in response and turned to help Alys put the sides into serving dishes. Alys bumped his hips and gave him a whispered scolding about easing up on Sansa.

Sansa turned to Jon and bit the inside of her cheek, “So that’s my big brother, Robb. He’s...protective, but a good guy. I’m sure you’ll get along well.” 

Jon kissed her cheek, “I’m sure we will.” 

She adjusted the napkin next to the plate and took in a breath to ready herself. She took his hand and led him back to the main kitchen area. She swallowed hard and tapped Robb on the shoulder, “Robb, this is Jon. Jon, this is Robb, my older brother.”

Robb held a hand out and Jon took his hand, giving a firm handshake, “Nice to meet you Jon. You’re in for a fun packed weekend with the whole family here. It’s never dull when we’re all together. Especially between Sansa and Arya. Those two are like water and oil.”

Sansa narrowed her eyes at Robb, “We haven’t had a big blowout argument since high school…” 

Jon chuckled, “Honestly, I’m just glad to be here and that Sansa felt comfortable enough to introduce me to her family.”

He nodded and gave him a friendly smile, “I hope you enjoy the weekend though. It should be fun since the whole family is here.” 

Jon smiled, “Thanks. I’m sure I’ll have a good time.” 

Robb excused himself to go get changed for dinner and Sansa encouraged Jon to go relax while she and Alys finished setting food out on the table. She and Alys talked about how she and Jon met and how the bakery is doing and what Jon does for a living. She talked briefly about Elyanna with Alys and how it makes her a little nervous to be dating someone with a kid. 

“What if it doesn’t work out and it affects her negatively? I don’t want to do anything that might hurt her,” Sansa said, straightening the flower arrangement. 

“You won’t. You love kids Sansa and I’ve known you long enough to know that even if things between you and Jon end, you’ll find a way to at least be friends so that Elyanna won’t get hurt,” Alys told her, “Try not to overthink this. I know you’re famous for it, but Jon seems like a really great guy and I think if you keep an open mind, this could be a great, long, healthy relationship for you.” 

Sansa tapped a nail against the wood, high-backed chair that great-grandma Stark bought when she moved into the house, “I’m trying. I’m happy when I’m with him and he makes me feel safe...it’s been a long time since I’ve been able to feel completely safe around a guy.”   
“I know. No one could blame after Joffrey…or Harry really,” Alys told her. “We’re here for you no matter what though Sansa. Robb has your back and I might be extremely pregnant and significantly slower than normal, but I’ll still kick someone’s ass if I need to.” 

When Alys wasn’t pregnant, she was a Krav Maga instructor for a local gym and just an all around badass.

Sansa smiled and hugged her sister-in-law, “Thank you.” 

“Anytime,” Alys murmured. 

They finished setting up and Sansa went to find Jon. She let him know dinner was ready and called upstairs to let everyone know dinner was ready. She led Jon to the table and took her usual place at the table, motioning to the seat next to her for him to take. 

Arya slid into the chair across from her and the dark haired man across from Jon. Jojen and Rickon slid into the seats on the other side of Jon while Robb took the seat next to Arya’s friend, Alys across from him and Harrion next to Robb. Two seats on either side sat empty and Catelyn and Ned took their seats at either end of the table. 

“Mama, when are Bran and Meera getting here?” Sansa asked, placing her napkin over her lap. 

“Meera had a game with her soccer team and Bran needed to finish up some paper for one of his law classes so they’ll be here early tomorrow I think,” Catelyn said. 

Sansa nodded and smile softly. Ned fixed his plate and passed around the platter of chicken. Once everyone’s plate was fixed, they all dug into dinner and made small talk. 

Arya introduced the man beside her as Gendry, a guy she met the last time she was out at one of the oil sites to get reports from the site supervisors and her new boyfriend. Sansa introduced Jon to Arya and Gendry. She made introductions to Rickon and Jojen, Bran’s best friend and future brother-in-law, for both Gendry and Jon. 

Jojen, Rickon, and Robb cleaned up dinner after Sansa and Arya put away the leftovers into the fridge. Sansa went out to feed the dogs and brought them all in. Ghost and Lady immediately made their way upstairs to Sansa’s room while Nymeria went off to find Arya and Grey Wind made his way to the converted basement where Robb and his family normally stayed. Shaggydog, Rickon’s dog, went to his kennel beside the fireplace. 

Sansa led Jon outside to the porch with a glass of wine in hand. She handed a beer over to him and sat down on the swing. When he joined her on the swing, she took a sip of her wine and leaned in close to him, “So, that’s my very large, very...interesting family.” 

“They all seem great Sansa,” he said, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. 

“So not overwhelming or making you feel the need to run as fast as you can away from me?” Sansa asked. 

“No. It’ll take a lot more than a protective brother or a big family to make me run,” Jon told her. “So, do all your siblings work with your Dad at the oil company?” 

Sansa shook her head, “No, just Robb and Arya. Rickon works for my great-uncle Brynden at the fishery in the summers and during breaks. He has no idea what he wants to major in if our conversations about college are anything to go by. Bran is in law school, but he wants to do disability and civil rights law. Arya is in charge of basically every oil site in this region and Robb is a lawyer and works for the company in acquisitions. Then there’s me, the odd ball.” 

“Odd ball?” Jon asked, furrowing his brow.

“Well everyone else has pretty practical jobs and I decided to go off on a limb and open my own business. I took the biggest risk,” Sansa told him. 

“I wouldn’t say that makes you an odd ball. I’d say that makes you incredibly brave, Sansa.” 

Sansa smiled and kissed him gently, “Thank you.” 

“What for?” 

“Just being you…” Sansa told him, pressing a kiss to his cheek before turning back to watch the water roll across the lake and the rippled reflection of the moon.

They stayed on the porch to finish their drinks and enjoy the quiet before heading up to her bedroom to go to sleep. Lady was settled on her bed in the far corner of the room and Ghost was , sleeping when they reached the room. Once they were in pajamas, they climbed into bed and for the first time in a long while, a man she wanted to be close to and held by while she slept, tucked her into his side and held her close. He kissed the top of her head and whispered a ‘sweet dreams.’ She settled into his embrace, murmured goodnight and fell slowly into a comfortable sleep.


	8. Day 36: Lemons and Apples

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They were clearly in love and enjoying the party that was meant to celebrate this next step in their life.This was a much more enjoyable event than any of her own engagement parties over the last couple years because of that. She could only hope that her next one would be more like Bran and Meera's.

Saturday passed quickly in a blur of prep work for the party on Sunday and the arrival of the big tent that the rental company set up in the backyard along with a temporary dance floor. Bran and Meera arrived right after breakfast and they were introduced to Jon before Arya helped Bran with getting their things into the house. Sansa and Jon went out with Robb and Arya on the boat for a while, rotating through skiing, tubing, and just cruising on the lake. She cooked dinner with Alys and had wine with Meera after dessert to talk about some of the catering details for tomorrow. She scheduled a day to go up to the college and discuss the menu for the actual wedding in a couple months time. She turned into bed with Jon that night and snuggled into him as a movie played on her TV. They drifted off to sleep with a John Hughes movie in the background. 

Sansa woke up early on Sunday and dressed in jeans and a t-shirt to start cooking. She kissed her mom on the cheek and tied on a half apron. She made a quick spread of pancakes, bacon, and sausage for breakfast before moving on to the food for the party that night. 

Rickon was the first to come down the stairs. He piled food onto a plate and sat at the kitchen counter bar, watching her cook. She talked to him about how things were at the fishery this summer and how college applications have been going. He answered simply as he ate quickly. Arya and Robb trudged down the stairs with Harrion bounding down ahead of them. They fixed plates and went to the dining table. Everyone else filed in slowly and fixed plates, saying thank you and moving to the table to eat. Jon was the last person to come into the kitchen to make a plate. He took the plate from the counter, placed a kiss on her cheek, and whispered a good morning before going to join everyone else in the dining room. 

Sansa put the bread dough into a lightly oiled bowl covered with seran wrap and set it to the side to rise. She moved on to making the lemon poppy seed poundcake with lavender glaze that Meera requested. She was joined in the kitchen by Catelyn to help with the prep work for all of the dishes. Sansa started on a batch of apple cupcakes with a spiced buttercream frosting. 

Once the bread was risen and the lemon poppy seed cake was cooling on a rack, she put the bread in a square, greased bread pan and put it into the oven. She started the sides for the dinner which included garlic smashed red potatoes and broccoli rabe sauteed with red peppers and olive oil. 

She put the chicken into the oven to broil after pulling out the bread to cool. She put a tray of garlic parmesan bacon-wrapped asparagus and a tray of mushroom caps stuffed with couscous into the oven for appetizers. While those baked, she whipped up the lavender glaze for the lemon poppy seed poundcake. She sliced the bread and put it into a bowl with a towel to keep it warm before handing it off to be taken out to the tent. She started plating things onto serving trays and letting the servers take them out. She placed the lemon poppy seed poundcake onto a cake plate and put the cupcakes on a tiered serving plate made especially for the cupcakes. 

She wiped her hands off on her apron and left to get dressed. She sat down on the bed and flopped back with a heavy sigh. 

“Everything okay?” Jon asked from where he was tying his tie in the mirror. 

“Yeah, I just forgot how much cooking like that takes out of me…” 

He chuckled and kissed the top of her head softly, “I’m sure it’s all going to be highly enjoyed.” 

Jon sat down on the edge of the bed and put on his dress shoes. She glanced over at him. His normally untamed curls were tamed and the sleeves of his white button down were rolled to his elbows. His tie was a deep blue color that she loved. 

“It better be…” she murmured. 

Sansa got up from the bed and stripped out of her clothes. She wrapped her towel around her and kissed his cheek before going to take a quick shower. She finished her shower, blow dried her hair and brushed her teeth before heading back to her bedroom. She got dressed and smoothed the skirt of her strapless, empire waist mint green dress with the scalloped hem. She slipped her feet into a pair of nude pumps before moving to the vanity to curl her hair and do her make-up. She put on a silver geometric necklace to complete the outfit.

“Ready?” She asked, turning to him. 

Jon stood up from the bed, “As I’ll ever be.” 

She smiled and smoothed the collar of his shirt, “You look handsome.” 

“You’re stunning…” he murmured, pressing a kiss to her lips. 

They made their way downstairs and through the house to the tent where all of her family was already gathered. She took his hand in hers and looked up at him, “I’m sorry I was cooped up in the kitchen all day.”

“Don’t worry about it. I glanced in a couple times. You looked like you were enjoying yourself,” he told her, “Besides, I got to spend some time with Harrion and your sister. They’re quite the pair.” 

Sansa nodded in agreement, “They are…” 

She squeezed his hand before leading him towards the table they were assigned to with Arya, Gendry, and their Uncle Brynden.

Sansa introduced Jon to Brynden and chatted with them before one of the little ones dragged her off to dance with them as the band played. She got to sit at the table for a while and talk to Jon about the families that lived closest to them. She followed everyone else up to get dinner and ate while Jojen gave a speech about the first time Bran and Meera met. When he was done, it was her turn to give a talk about her brother. She stood from her spot, smoothed her dress, and walked up to the front where the band was set up. She took the microphone and gave Jojen a hug before he went to sit back down. 

She cleared her throat and smoothed the skirt of her dress one more time, “Hi everyone. I’m Sansa, Bran’s older sister, Meera's maid of honor, and their personal chef for the day.” 

She shot them a wink and waved teasingly, “Anyway, when Bran and Meera first asked me to cater. I was hesitant to be honest, but in the end it wasn’t my love for my younger brother that made me say yes, even though I do love him dearly. It was Meera and the way she loves my brother. I was 12 when Bran’s accident happened and I can clearly remember asking our parents if Bran would ever be normal again after he came home in the wheelchair. I was young and naive and thought a lot about getting older and finding someone to be my prince charming and thought normal was the most important thing in the world. The prince charming picture was important to me at that age and my brain told me that Bran could never be that for anyone now that he couldn't be normal. The older we got, the more worried about Bran finding someone to love him despite his disability I became. It wasn’t until Meera came along that I realized that he didn’t need someone to love him despite his disability. He needed Meera who just saw him as Bran. She saw him as someone who is passionate about wildlife and creating the change in the world we all wish we could create, not as the boy in the in a wheelchair. She found her prince charming in my dorky little brother. I can’t wait to see where life takes Meera and Bran on their journey. To Meera and Bran’s engagement!” 

She toasted with a glass of champagne someone handed her and took a sip. She stopped by Bran and Meera’s table to give her brother a kiss on the top of his head and hug Meera. Sansa sat back down next to Jon and leaned in to whisper in his ear, “Not too bad?” 

“Perfect,” he whispered back, kissing her softly. 

She smiled and they went back to eating dinner. The servers she hired gathered the dinner plates and passed out smaller plates for dessert. The tables got up one by one to get dessert. Meera stopped by to thank Sansa for the lovely speech and the delicious poundcake before heading back to where Bran was talking to the Umber boys. She watched them together and smiled. They were clearly in love and enjoying the party that was meant to celebrate this next step in their life. This was a much more enjoyable event than any of her own engagement parties over the last couple years because of that. She could only hope that her next one would be more like Bran and Meera's. 

Once everything was cleaned up and everyone was gone from the Stark Estate, Sansa paid the servers and headed up to the house. She found Jon having a beer in the kitchen with Robb, Arya, and Gendry. She slipped her heels off in the doorway, closing the door behind her and coming to stand next to them. 

Arya noticed her first, “Hey sis. Dinner was amazing. You really out did yourself for this shindig.” 

She smiled and laughed softly, “Thanks Arya. I’m glad everyone liked the food. There was hardly anything left…” 

“It was delicious little sister,” Robb said, placing a kiss on the top of her head before tossing his empty bottle into the recycling, “I’m going to join my wife in bed before Harrion wakes us up bright and early. Night all.” 

They chorused a “good night” in return and soon Gendry and Arya were heading down to her bedroom off the basement, leaving Sansa and Jon in the kitchen by themselves. 

She leaned her hip against the counter, “Did you have fun?” 

He set his beer down and stepped closer to her, resting one hand on her hip, “I did. Thank you for inviting me.” 

She smiled and leaned up to kiss him, “Thank you for coming along.” 

Jon pulled back from her and pressed his forehead to hers, “You ready to go to bed?” 

She nodded and he left her to throw away his beer bottle. She took his hand and led him up to her bedroom. Ghost and Lady hopped off Sansa’s bed and retreated to their own dog beds when they walked into the room. They changed into pajamas and Sansa went to the bathroom to take her make-up off. 

Jon pulled her back to his chest and kissed her shoulder gently. They talked about the party for a while before slowly falling asleep. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sansa and Jon woke up early the next morning, packed their bags, and loaded everything into the car before joining everyone for a breakfast of bananas foster waffles, her mother’s specialty. The conversation was lively and Jon seemed more at ease around her family than when they arrived on Friday. She was glad that this initial introduction between Jon and her family went well. They helped clean up after breakfast before leaving. 

Jon offered to drive and was the first to head down to the car to get Ghost and Lady settled in the backseat. Ned stopped Sansa on her way down the front steps. 

“Everything okay, Daddy?” she asked. 

“Everything’s fine, sunshine. I just, I wanted to let you know that I think Jon seems like a fine young man. Much better than Joffrey or Harry. Even Willas and we both know how much we all liked Willas. Feel free to bring him around more.” 

She smiled softly, “Thank you Daddy. He is pretty great.” Sansa bit the inside of her cheek and fiddled with the hammered silver ring on her thumb, “I’m not sure how often he’ll be able to be around. He normally has his daughter, but her mother had her this weekend…” 

“Bring her too.” 

Ned kissed her cheek and gave her arm a squeeze before waving at Jon. She smiled and made her way down to the car. She got into the car and Jon started it up. 

“Everything good?” he asked, swinging around the semicircle driveway to make his way down the long drive. 

“Yeah, everything’s perfect.” She turned the bluetooth on her phone on and picked a playlist for their ride back home. She reached for his free hand and intertwined their fingers, settling in for the drive.


	9. Day 40: Blackberries and Blood Oranges

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The last place Sansa expected to see him was in the middle of all her happiness. With Robert Baratheon dead and in the ground after the divorce and his mother moved into some high rise penthouse with her athlete boyfriend, there should have been no reason for him to be there. There shouldn’t have been, but the youngest Frey girl on his arm and the familiar sparkler on her ring finger was reason enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **TRIGGER WARNING: Abuse, implied rape, panic attacks**
> 
>  
> 
> The italics will be flashbacks and the bold is emphasis (since I usually use italics for emphasis).

The basket of blackberries and blood oranges she got from Jon only minutes ago dropped to the pavement as her breath caught in her throat and her hand gripped the fabric of Arya’s shirt sleeve tightly. Her vision began to tunnel and she could feel her sister dragging her out of the market back towards the car while shouting useless excuses to Jon. 

When Sansa was a sophomore in high school, she was vapid and believed in fairytales. Her interests were only skin-deep and Arya would over the course over the next couple years, call her shallow and selfish more often than not. She still helped her mother take care of the boys, but once Rickon finished dinner, she’d be gone and climbing into Joffrey Baratheon’s sleek white BMW and head off to whatever party he’d been invited to that night. 

Joffrey was everything Sansa thought she wanted in a boyfriend when she was 16 years old. He was pretty, popular, and wealthier than her family, that never hurt for anything, could ever imagine to be. His mother was a steel heiress and his father was in oil just like her family was. While Ned Stark came from big oil money, her mother was from a fairly small family that owned several lobster boats and made a hefty sum off it, but would never add up to the steel money Joffrey’s mom came from. He was the bright and shiny prince all the fairytales told her about. He was from a good family, a sports star, and had a bright future ahead of him. 

In the beginning, everything was fine. He was the perfect boyfriend. Sometimes he would catch a tone with her, but it was usually easy to brush off as stress because of exams or something to do with his parents’ impending divorce. 

It wasn’t until their senior year that she came to realize that the yelling and disparaging comments were part of who he was and then purple started blooming on her fair skin. 

_You’re useless! Absolutely useless! I asked for a Yuengling, not fucking Blue Moon!_

She knew it was wrong and he shouldn’t have been touching her like that, but she loved him and he was her Joff, her prince. She threatened to leave him before prom and he pulled out a shiny ring with a big diamond and she could practically hear the wedding bells right then. Surely, he’d changed and they were going to live happily ever after now. 

_I’ll break up with you if you don’t stop hitting me Joffrey. I don’t deserve it. I don’t care if I have to go to prom by myself...I don’t want to, but I will._  
_I’m sorry, babe. I’ll be better now. I promise….Marry me?_

High school graduation passed and freshman year came, they went off to King’s Landing University together and lived in an apartment off campus that his mother was paying for. Sansa thought living together was going to be amazing and just the start of the long, happy life she had to look forward to with Joffrey, but with the apartment to themselves and the thick walls the building promised would keep sound out, also kept her screams in. 

 

He mastered putting the purple blossoms where others wouldn’t see. He became a professional at making her wince with just a step towards her. He spent their private hours beating her down, physically and mentally. His birthday present to her that year was a bender and a fractured wrist. 

_Joff, please, my wrist…_

Months passed before she got to go home for winter break. She hid in her room, sent his ring back to him in an envelope with a letter, and transferred to Vale College starting that spring. She suffered until she was 19 at the hands of the first boy she ever loved. 

She made a series of bad decisions after Joffrey that led to a relationship with a man who took more pleasure from watching purple bloom on her skin and testing just how much pain she could take than Joffrey did. 

_Stop...please...I can’t breathe…_  
_Shut up slut. I’m just starting to have fun._

Then it was her brief and messy relationship with Harry, who cheated on her and made her feel worthless more often than not without any concern for if she knew or not. 

_How could you, Harry? I thought you loved me?_  
_How could I ever possibly love a frigid bitch like you?_

After that it was her engagement to Willas. 

Margaery’s older brother was sweet and sensitive and everything Sansa should have been happy with after Joffrey and her other boyfriends. He was her TA for her one of her classes her senior yearand once she’d finished the class, he asked her out on a date. They’d dated for a year or two before he asked her to marry him. She knew she was in no place for a healthy dating relationship, let alone a marriage, but Willas had made her laugh when she was certain all the bright, happy things had been drained from her world. She felt like if she just stuck with him for long enough, she could fall in love with him like he deserved. In the end, that hadn’t happened and she’d broke off the engagement only a smattering of days before their engagement party. He’d been crushed and confused, but eventually understanding in the way only Willas could have been. 

_I don’t understand, Sansa. I thought we were happy. We’re getting married in 6 months...I thought you loved me too._  
_I’m so sorry Willas...so sorry. I just, I can’t. I don’t, I mean, I love you, just not the way I should. You’ve been amazing, but you deserve someone who will love you more than anything._

She’d been single ever since and working through her issues slowly. Learning to trust others and herself and figuring out the best way to approach a new relationship so that she wouldn’t the memories of what had happened to her poison something promising. She’d been making good progress and was well on her way to happiness when she met Jon in the market. She was opening up to him and letting herself slowly trust him, the more he proved himself exactly the kind, loyal, and funny man he seemed.

The last place Sansa expected to see him was in the middle of all her happiness. With Robert Baratheon dead and in the ground after the divorce and his mother moved into some high rise penthouse with her athlete boyfriend, there should have been no reason for him to be there. There shouldn’t have been, but the youngest Frey girl on his arm and the familiar sparkler on her ring finger was reason enough. 

She’d thought she was done with panic attacks after she discontinued her anxiety meds and took up yoga, but Joffrey was proving to be a challenge for the multitude of coping skills she’d developed over the years. She vaguely remembered being helped into bed by Robb and Arya and Lady venturing into normally forbidden territory to nuzzle underneath Sansa’s arm so that it was resting across the big dog’s back. She blearily registered Robb and Arya discussing who would stay and the knock on her apartment door. 

The door to her bedroom opened and was left open a crack as Robb and Arya squeezed out. She heard the front latch open and someone come inside followed by three voices whispering furiously. Her knees pulled tighter to her chest and Lady whimpered, nuzzling Sansa’s cheek. 

Her bedroom door squeaked as someone eased it open. She felt the bed dip down behind her and a gentle, calloused hand come to rest on her bare shoulder. A choked sob forced its way out and she turned, burying her face in the easy scent of fresh citrus and sandalwood. He pulled her closer gently as he stroked her hair and whispered comforting words she could barely make out into her ear. 

Sansa wasn’t sure how long it took her to calm down or stop crying, but time never made sense in the blur of panic and anxiety. She sniffed, wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her sweater and shifted in Jon’s arms. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” he whispered, his fingers still threading through her hair. 

“Want to? No. Never,” Sansa turned the ring around her thumb once, twice, three times before taking a deep breath, “but we should. It’s...important. It’s a part of me you should know.” 

Jon hummed his understanding, “Whenever you’re ready to talk, I’m all ears.” 

She lay there for awhile longer, feeling safe and preparing herself to explain the panic attack to him. 

“I’m sure you know what a panic attack looks like so I don’t have to explain that to you, but why I have them is...I saw one of my exes, my first fiance actually, at the market today. Last I heard he was living in Casterly Rock near his mother’s family and I haven’t seen him since I was a freshman in college…”

She bit the inside of her cheek and looked down at her hands, taking a minute to figure out the right words. She left out a long sigh and ran her tongue over her dry lips, “It started out normally enough. I was vapid and materialistic and obsessed with having the perfect life as a teenager, we were together from sophomore year until that first semester of college, and he was everything I picture prince charming would be. He had me so fooled, I felt like an idiot when I figured it out. He promised to change, they never do, but he proposed and I was convinced he meant everything he said. We went to the same college and moved in together. I never imagined it would get worse. It never occurred to me that it could go that way, I thought it could only get better.

It took a lot for me to leave, but by the time I did, the damage was done. I was anxious all the time. I flinched at the slightest noise. I started having panic attacks before I even left him if I’m honest. I froze in the middle of a presentation for a class when a door slammed and when I finally came out of it, I was surrounded by people and had completely forgotten where I was. 

Anyway...I left and transferred to Vale. The day Robb and Alys picked me up with Harrion in the backseat for winter break was the last time I saw him. Now he’s back and engaged and I panicked. I couldn’t even warn her...I should have warned her.” 

Tears started to trail down her cheeks and Jon held her a little tighter, pressing a kiss to the crown of her head. She hated having to tell him this story. This wasn’t ever in the plan she had for them. Her demons were supposed to be far, far away. She could only hope Jon would understand and that he liked her enough to stick with her. She composed herself and accepted a tissue from the box on her nightstand.

“Thank you,” she whispered. 

“Anytime,” he murmured, his hand rubbing her back gently. 

Sansa sniffed and wiped her eyes, “Everything with Joffrey left me scarred, mentally more than physically, and even hundreds of miles away from him at Vale, I was having panic attacks and trying anything to escape the memory. Then I met Ramsay. He was charismatic and a little creepy, but I ignored it. He was a frat boy and drove a fancy car. I should have seen it, but I didn’t. Nothing Joffrey did could have prepared me for him. That lasted longer than it should have, but he got arrested and I was free again. 

After Joffrey and Ramsay, I was left with some pretty significant issues and I was desperate to feel like I was worth something. Anything. Harry was a lifesaver when we got together, but he was a cheater too and I ignored it because he called me pretty and didn’t hit me. Eventually that ended too.” 

She picked at the cuticle of her thumbnail while she contemplated whether or not to talk about Willas. He’d never hurt he and he’d been nothing, but good to her while they were together, but she was ashamed of what she’d done to him. How she’d hurt **him** this time. 

She told him as much and Jon took her face gently in his hands, “Sansa, you have a big heart and you love so much. I can’t imagine that whatever you did to hurt him was malicious. You’d been through alot. He was **truly** good to you. You needed that.” 

She swallowed hard and tears fell from her eyes, trailing over his hands. Sansa leaned her cheek into his hand and practiced the breathing her therapist taught her before moving into one of the last parts of her story, “Willas was my TA in undergrad and Margaery is his sister so we hung out some and got to know each other outside of class. He made me laugh at a time I thought I’d forgotten how. We dated and got engaged and six months before our wedding at our engagement party, I told him I couldn’t. I loved him, but not enough to marry him. Willas was completely caught off-guard. I’d never said or done anything to indicate we were anything less than...perfect. He understood in the end, but I feel awful to this day. I hurt a really good man. 

After I broke off the engagement, I graduated college and was really lost for awhile. I was still terrified that Joffrey or Ramsay would come back and hurt me all over again. I had panic attacks and would stay in bed for days at a time with all the lights off and my curtains drawn. It was really scary, but I couldn’t bring myself to do anything about it. Then Arya, who I’m not especially close to, came bursting into my apartment and told me that I was scaring our parents and Harrion was begging for his Aunt San-San. They were all worried about me. I started therapy that week and she’s been really great. I still go see her every other week and take my anxiety medication to help with the anxiousness. I took up yoga, it’s really helped reduce my panic attacks, but sometimes Rickon and Harrion will be playing too rough in the backyard or come crashing through the house and I lose it. Sometimes, a door closes too hard and I can’t deal. Or things like today happen. It’s apart of who I am and it’s big. It’s tough and I fight with it everyday, but everyday I’m here and running my bakery and going out…” 

Her hand found his cheek, stroking it gently with her thumb, “and everyday I fall more in love with you and trust you more is a win. It’s a day that I beat Joffrey and Ramsay and show them that even though they tried their hardest, they couldn’t break me.” 

Silence passed between them before he kissed her gently and pressed his forehead to hers, “I am so proud of you and if you were scared this would make me think of you differently or love you any less, it only makes me happier that you’re mine and your strength and how you live your life after all that...it only makes me love you more.” 

Sansa managed a soft smile and curled into him, “I love you Jon Snow.” 

“And I love you Sansa Stark.” 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After Jon assured Arya and Robb multiple times that he had it covered and they’d left, he moved back to Sansa’s room and took a pair Robb’s sweatpants she’d stolen from him from her to sleep in. He stripped off his shirt and pulled on the sweatpants before joining Sansa in bed. He lay on his back and she snuggled into him with her head resting above his heart and one leg thrown over his. Jon kissed the top of her head and held her close, wishing he’d been able to stop those terrible things from happening to her. He would do everything he could to protect this woman who had been through so much and had worked her way into his heart so completely. He would stay with her and fight for them as hard as he needed to because he was in love with Sansa Stark and he wasn’t the type of man to let go of someone he loved without a fight.


	10. Day 84: Nectarines and Raspberries

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ygritte cleared her throat and reached a hand out to Sansa, “He’s never been good with introductions. Ygritte Lister, Elyanna’s mother.” 
> 
> Sansa took the woman’s hand and gave it a firm shake, “Sansa Stark, Jon’s girlfriend. It’s nice to meet you. I hear a lot about you from Ely when I’m over.”

The knock on the front door of Jon’s house shocked Sansa out of her trance-like state. She was slicing nectarines into thin slices for her nectarine and almond cream tart. She paused, laid the knife down on the cutting board, and wiped her hands off on the towel thrown over her shoulder. 

Another knock sounded as she made her way to the front door. She huffed out a sigh and tugged the door open. She felt her face take on a surprise expression and she cleared her throat, preparing herself to speak, but someone beat her to it. 

“Miss Sansa!!” Elyanna exclaimed, launching herself at her legs. 

Sansa reached out as the five year old attached herself to her legs and rubbed her back lightly, “Hey Ely. Did you have a good weekend?” 

“Uh huh! Mommy and I went to the aquarium with Auntie Dalla,” she told her, stepping back from Sansa as the dogs came bounding through the house to the sound of the little girl’s voice. 

She heard the back door shut and looked up to Elyanna’s mother, “I was just doing some baking while Jon worked out in the fields some…” 

The older woman nodded, an indifferent look on her face, “Understood.” 

“Sansa? The dogs came running through like crazy, everything okay?” Jon asked, making his way to the front of the house. His eyes found Ely first where she was playing on the floor with Ghost, Lady, and Visenya and Sansa watched as his eyes traced a line from his daughter to his ex-wife. 

“Hello Jon.” 

“Ygritte. You’re early?” he said, clearing his throat. 

She nodded, “Yeah. Something came up with the paper so I needed to bring her back early. I called and left a voicemail, but Sansa here was explaining that you’ve been in the fields all morning.” 

“Uh, yeah...I have,” he nodded, his eyes moving between his ex-wife and girlfriend. “I left my phone in the bedroom…”

Ygritte cleared her throat and reached a hand out to Sansa, “He’s never been good with introductions. Ygritte Lister, Elyanna’s mother.” 

Sansa took the woman’s hand and gave it a firm shake, “Sansa Stark, Jon’s girlfriend. It’s nice to meet you. I hear a lot about you from Ely when I’m over.”

Ygritte gave her a tight smile and released her hand. She turned her attention from Sansa back to Elyanna, “Ely, honey, why don’t you go with Miss Sansa and let Daddy and I have a talk, okay?” 

Ely nodded, “Okay Mommy.” 

She got up from the floor and moved over to Sansa, who picked her up and carried her into the kitchen. She set her down and brought her stool over, so that the little girl could see what she was doing. 

Ely was helping her lay the nectarines down on the almond cream when Sansa heard the front door close. Jon joined them in the kitchen a couple moments later, “How are my two favorite girls?” 

“We’re just finishing up the tart. Ely has been doing an amazing job helping me put the nectarines on the tart I’m making,” Sansa chimed. 

Ely grinned, “I ate some too.”

Jon moved and tickled Ely gently, “Did you, silly girl?”

She squealed and squirmed away, getting off the stool to go play with the dogs. 

Once they were sure she was out of range, Jon stepped closer to Sansa and kissed her cheek while he wrapped his arms around her waist, “Hi.” 

She leaned back against his chest slightly, continuing to place the slices of nectarine meticulously on the almond cream, “Hello. So...that was the ex-wife. A much more pleasant first meeting than I thought she and I would have.” 

Jon chuckled and nuzzled her neck with his nose, “She’s not all bad. Not an entirely attentive mother and she was not the best pick of wife for me, but she has her moments.” 

Sansa placed the final slice of fruit on the tart and turned around, “Well, hopefully you’ll find someone who is a better pick for you.” 

He leaned in close and placed a soft, brief kiss on her lips, “I’m working on it.” 

She laughed and kissed him back, “So...I was doing some thinking and I know we discussed Rhaenys watching Elyanna while we go to my brother’s wedding next month, but I was thinking that I might drive up to the university the day before and do my prep work and you and Elyanna could meet me up there the next day for the wedding.” 

“Yeah? You think your family would be okay with that?” 

She nodded, “I do. Besides...we’ve been together for a little bit and I, well, I think things are going well. My family has already met you, so it’s really just...time that they met Ely. She’s just as much a part of this as you and I are. You know I adore her. I’m sure they will, too. Plus, she’ll give Harrion someone his own age to play with.” 

Jon gave her a half-smile and kissed her deeply, “I would love to bring Ely with, but I’ll need to talk to Ygritte about it. Her being okay with you around El is one thing, but your family is a whole other deal.” 

She nodded, “I know. Just, keep me posted.” 

She gave him a quick peck on the lips and picked up the tart to put in the fridge for after dinner. Sansa smiled back at him and went to find Ely and the dogs.

~~~~~~~~

Sansa was in the back of the bakery a couple days later icing raspberry frosting onto chocolate cupcakes with a cream cheese filling when the bell on the front door of the bakery jingled. 

“Coming!” 

She set down her piping bag and wiped her hands on her apron before making her way out front. She stepped through the metal swinging door of the kitchen to see Ygritte standing in the middle of her bakery. 

“Hi. What brings you in?” she asked. 

“I just thought we might have a little chat about you and Elyanna’s relationship,” the other woman said, setting her purse down on one of the tables. “Do you have time?” 

Sansa nodded, “I do. I was just icing some cupcakes, but I can flip the sign for my lunch break. Do you want to go grab something from the cafe?”

Ygritte picked up her purse and nodded, “That sounds lovely. I’ll buy.” 

“Oh you don’t have to. I can get lunch,” she insisted. 

“No, I insist. I’m the one asking you to talk. Let me buy,” Ygritte said. 

Sansa nodded, “Alright. Just give me one moment.” 

She went to the back and hung up her apron, grabbed her purse, and locked up the bakery before flipping the sign for her lunch. She pushed the door open and let Ygritte out before following behind her. 

They walked in silence down the street towards the Lys Garden Cafe, one of Sansa and Myrcella’s favorite places to get lunch on the main strip of shops. She opened the door to let Ygritte in and a server sat them at a booth on the left side of the cafe next to the windows. 

Sansa slipped into booth and set her purse down beside her, smoothing the skirt of her dress nervously. She knew at some point Ygritte might want to speak with her about her involvement in Elyanna’s life, but she had imagined she might have more warning than she’d gotten today. 

Ygritte ordered a water with lemon while Sansa got an unsweetened green tea with lemon and both of them ordered house salads. They mostly sat in silence while they waited for their salads and drinks. 

“Well from what I’ve gathered from Elyanna, you tend to spend a lot of time over at Jon’s house when Ely is there. I’ve also been able to gather that she enjoys spending time with you, which is good, but I am concerned that she is perhaps getting too attached to you with it still being so early in yours and Jon’s relationship.” 

Sansa bit her lip and took a sip of her tea before speaking, “I’m assuming you want complete honesty from me...to be completely honest, when I first met Jon and realized I had feelings for him, I was reluctant to do anything about it because of my past relationship history, but mostly because I wasn’t sure if dating someone with a child was a good idea. I was concerned that if things went south with Jon and I, it would affect Elyanna negatively. I was honestly still concerned about that until a couple weeks ago when I spoke with my sister-in-law. She’s known me practically my whole life and she said that for as long as she’s known me, I’ve had good relationships with kids, my nephew loves me, and that she knew I would never do anything that would hurt Ely. That if things did end between Jon and I, that I would find a way to still be friends with him, so that the end of the relationship wouldn’t affect her negatively…” she took another drink of her tea. 

“Well, I…” Ygritte started. 

“I have a little bit more to say. Ygritte, I love Jon, I do. I’m not sure I’ve actually said it to anyone except him until now, but I love him and I want to be with him for a long time to come, but I also love Ely. She’s sweet and so fun and even when she’s in a bad mood, I love being around her. I like that she likes to help me bake and lets me brush and braid her hair while we watch movies. I can promise that I will never hurt her intentionally and if I have any say in it, I will be around for a long time to come, even if things between Jon and I change.” 

“Okay then.” 

“Okay.” 

Their salads arrived and they ate in mostly silence, except for a few questions about the upcoming Stark wedding that Ygritte was okay with Ely coming to and some from Sansa about what Ygritte does for work. As promised, Ygritte pays for lunch and they leave the restaurant with leftovers in hand. 

“Thank you for having this talk with me. I know it couldn’t have been easy with me just showing up, but...I’m not a perfect mother and maybe not the most attentive, but I love Elyanna. She’s my daughter and I want what’s best for her. I want her to be happy.” 

Sansa smiled, “Thank you. I can’t begin to imagine what it’s like to have someone new coming into your child’s life when you’re not sure if they’re going to stick around or not. I appreciate having the chance to explain that I’m here for the long haul and that I do really care about Ely. I hope we can continue this kind of open communication.” 

Ygritte nodded, “I’d like that, too.” 

She stuck her hand out to Sansa and they shook hands. 

“Have a good day Ygritte.” 

“You as well Sansa.” 

She stood in place for several minutes, watching Ygritte walk down the sidewalk before she dug her phone from her purse and headed back towards the bakery to finish up for the day.

~~~~~~~~

Sansa didn’t see Jon until she’d braided Elyanna’s hair, read her two stories, and tucked her into bed for the night and she was climbing into Jon’s bed to braid her own hair. She looked up from tying the end of her fishtail braid to see Jon walking into the bedroom. 

“Hi love,” she murmured, reaching over to set her brush on the bedside table. 

He walked to her side of the bed and placed a gentle kiss on her temple, “Hey sweetheart. How was your day?” 

He moved around the bed, sitting down to take off his boots. She crawled across the bed to kneel behind him, draping her arms across his chest, placing a light kiss to the soft skin just behind his ear, “I had the _most_ interesting visitor at the bakery today…”

“Mmm?” he hummed. “Who was it?” 

“Ygritte.” 

He stiffened under her hands and she moved to massage his shoulders gently. 

“Don’t worry, babe. It was fine. She just wanted to talk to me about Elyanna. It was a conversation she and I needed to have. It went so well, in fact, that she said we could take Ely with us to the wedding.” 

He turned and kissed her, “I’m glad. She wasn’t too hard on you?”

“Not at all. Appropriately so. I know she’s not perfect, but she does care about Ely. She just wanted to make sure her little girl was taken care of and safe.” 

He nodded, “I know. It’s just hard to remember sometimes. 

“I know...just try. Come on, let’s go to bed.” 

“Alright…” 

Jon stood and stripped down to his boxers, climbing under the covers after her. He pulled her to his chest and pressed a gentle kiss to her shoulder. They lay there talking for a few moments about the wedding and the new produce deal he’d managed to land with Mormont Grocers. 

“I was thinking about...Sansa?”

She was snoring softly, curled up against his chest, and sleeping soundly. He chuckled and held her a little closer. 

“Goodnight, darling.”


	11. Day 105: Cherries and Limes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Thanks for letting me come over. I really needed to talk,” Sansa told her. 
> 
> “Of course. You know I’m always here to talk to if you need to,” she said, “Let me go give Lynesse to Robb, so we can talk.” 
> 
> She nodded and headed into the living room to settle on the armchair Robb inherited from Grandfather Hoster after he died. She was reading over an inquiry for sweet cherry limeade cookies Margaery sent her from the bakery’s website when Alys sat on the couch nearest her. 
> 
> “So what’s going on?”

Sansa slipped through the front door of Jon’s house after a catering gig and slipped her heels into the shoe rack under the bench. The light of the TV was flashing in the living room, so she made her way down the hallway and into the large, open space that housed the couch and Jon’s prized flat screen. She smiled as she spotted Jon on the couch and moved to sit next to him. 

“Whatcha watching?” she asked, pulling her feet up onto the couch. 

“Documentary on World War II. Vikings was on before this and I just didn’t feel like trying to find something else…” 

She leaned against him and he put his arm around her shoulder, “World War II documentaries are always a weird mix of sad and fascinating.” 

Jon hummed his agreement as she leaned into him, “How’d it go?”

“It was good. Maybe not a good idea just a couple days out from Bran and Meera’s wedding, but I needed the money, so…” she smiled. “Ely get off to bed alright?” 

“Yeah. She said my braids aren’t as good as yours. I should probably be mad...she used to like my braids.” 

Sansa laughed softly and patted his thigh lightly, “I’m sorry my braids are superior to yours. I’ve had a lot of years of practice.” 

Jon chuckled, “That’s true, I guess.” 

She smiled and yawned, “You’re almost ready to leave for the wedding, yeah?”

“Yup. Rhaenys will be back in town tomorrow so she can go into town to do the market thing and Grenn will be staying here to supervise the harvests and help with the animals,” Jon told her. 

“Good. Myrcella is coming to the wedding, so my friend Shaye is going to help with the bakery since her cafe basically runs itself these days,” Sansa told him.

It was quiet between them for awhile and once her eyes started to flutter close as her exhaustion wore down on her. They headed up to bed and snuggled in under the covers until Ely came bouncing in to wake them up extra early.

~~~~~

Sansa sat at a table with Jon, Shireen Baratheon, and Rickon while she watched Elyanna dance with Harrion with Arya and Gendry lingering closeby. It had been a beautiful wedding and her little brother was happily married to the love of his life. She also couldn’t deny that she’d done a rocking job on the cake and the menu for the reception. 

Shireen and Rickon got up to go dance as a song they liked came on. Rickon scooped up Harrion and swung him around as Shireen got Elyanna dancing along in a somewhat organized pattern. Jon looked to Sansa and leaned over to kiss her cheek. 

“What was that for?” she asked. 

“Just cause. I’m really glad everyone likes Ely so much,” Jon told her, “She’s really enjoyed getting to hang out with Harrion and Robb’s new baby is basically her favorite thing. Your parents have been great too.” 

“Mom has been thrilled about the prospect of grandchildren forever, so she’s excited to have another little one to fawn over. Dad is just plain good with kids,” she said. 

“Either way. I’m glad,” he said, taking her hand in his. 

Sansa kissed his cheek this time, squeezing his hand lightly. 

He turned and took her other hand in his, “I want to ask you something, but...I don’t want you to worry too much about giving me an answer right away. Just...think about it?” 

She furrowed her brow and nodded, “Okay...of course.” 

“Would you...would you want to move in together?” Jon asked, “You spend most of your time at my house and when you’re not, I miss you sleeping next to me. Ely misses you when you’re not there. I love you and I want us to live together.” 

She smoothed her hands over the deep purple skirt of her mid-thigh length dress and bit the inside of her cheek, “Have you talked to Elyanna about this? Ygritte? Hell, Rhaenys?” 

Jon nodded, “I have. I’ve been thinking about this for awhile. Ely was more than happy when we talked about it. Ygritte was Ygritte, and Rhaenys loves you. She practically started jumping for joy.” 

Sansa gave a weak smile and nodded, “Well, I’ll think about it. Let’s just get done with this wedding first?” 

Jon nodded, “Yeah. All I ask is you think about it.”   
“I will. I promise.” 

Jon nodded and stood up from his chair as a new song started, “Dance with me?” 

Sansa smiled at him, took his hand, and stood up to let him lead her out to the dancefloor to join her family and their friends. He scooped up his daughter and the three of them laughed, danced, and enjoyed the reception.

~~~~

Sansa pulled into Robb’s driveway after a long day at the bakery and shut off her car, sitting there for several long moments before getting out and heading up to the door. 

Alys answered the door and gave a her a bright smile before stepping aside to let her in. 

“Thanks for letting me come over. I really needed to talk,” Sansa told her. 

“Of course. You know I’m always here to talk to if you need to,” she said, “Let me go give Lynesse to Robb, so we can talk.” 

She nodded and headed into the living room to settle on the armchair Robb inherited from Grandfather Hoster after he died. She was reading over an inquiry for sweet cherry limeade cookies Margaery sent her from the bakery’s website when Alys sat on the couch nearest her. 

“So what’s going on?” 

“I needed your opinion. Jon asked me to move in with him. First instinct says to move in with him, but he’s further from town and, don’t you think it might be a little soon?” Sansa twisted her ring around her thumb nervously. 

“I don’t think it’s too soon. He’s talked to his daughter and his ex-wife about it?” 

“Yeah, Ely is excited and Ygritte doesn’t think it’s a horrible idea.” 

“From what I can tell with how much time Arya has been staying in your apartment, you spend an awful lot of time out at Jon’s already. How is the commute to the bakery?” Alys asked. 

“At the time I leave? Not bad at all…I started letting Myrcella open up and get started so I can help get Elyanna off to school in the morning when I stay out there.” 

Alys tilted her head slightly and shook her head, “Sansa, honey, I love that you wanted to talk to me about this, but you’re basically already living there. I think you’re just a little scared. You haven’t lived with a boyfriend since Willas and I think you don’t want to mess anything up by moving in.” 

Sansa bit the inside of her cheek and rubbed the lace edge of her t-shirt between her forefinger and thumb, “Maybe. We get a day or two break from each other now and what if being there all the time makes him realize we’re not a good fit, Alys? I really love him. I want us to be a good fit.” 

“You are a good fit. You two compliment each other so well. You bring him out of his shell and I haven’t seen you mesh with anyone this well and I’ve known you for a long time. Be confident. You two found each other for a reason,” Alys said, standing up from the couch, “Now, go tell your boyfriend you’ll move in with him.” 

Sansa laughed softly and stood up from the chair, hugging her sister-in-law, and leaving to drive back to the farm.

She walked through the front door just as Jon was setting dinner on the table. She toed off her shoes, set down her purse, and headed into the dining room. 

“Hey, you two.” 

Sansa sat down to the right of Elyanna and spread her napkin over her lap. Jon smiled at her and set the plate of baked chicken breast down in the center. 

“How was your brother’s house?” he asked, sitting down. 

“Good. Harrion is spending time with my parents, so I got to spend some time talking with Alys while Robb cooked and kept an ear out for Lynesse.” 

Jon nodded, beginning to put food onto Elyanna’s plate. Things were quiet around the table except for the clink of silverware against ceramic plates. Sansa got up from the table, took Elyanna’s cup to refill it with juice, and made herself a glass of juice. She place Ely’s Sleeping Beauty cup in front of her and sat down. 

“Miss Sansa? When are you moving in?” 

She felt her eyes widen and she set down her glass down with an ungraceful clank. 

“Elyanna Naerys Snow! It is not your place to ask that, young lady,” Jon scolded. 

Sansa breathed in and out slowly to give herself a moment to compose an answer, “Actually, it’s not a big deal Jon. Don’t be so tough on her, she’s excited. I was going to tell you both after dinner what I decided to do.” 

Jon’s attention switched from Elyanna to her, “Yeah?” His eyes lowered and looked over the table setting for a bit before finding her face again, “Wh...what did you decide?” 

She smiled and reached across the table and beside her to take their hands, “I’m moving in. As soon as I can get packed and moved in.” 

“What about your lease?” he asked, squeezing her hand. 

“Arya is going to take it over. My landlord said if she took it over, she wouldn’t charge me for technically ending it.” 

Jon grinned and looked to his daughter, “When do you think Miss Sansa should move in, lovey?” 

“Tomorrow!” 

Sansa laughed and patted the back of Elyanna’s hand, “Tomorrow is a little too soon, honey. I have to pack up everything at my apartment. How about I start moving things in two days from now?”

She scrunched her nose in thought and picked at the piece of biscuit on her plate, “I guess so. Are you bringing Lady?” 

She and Jon laughed, digging back into their dinner, and talking with Elyanna about her dance class that started earlier in the week. 

After dinner, cleaning up the kitchen, and a bath for Ely, Sansa took a shower and got into bed while Jon read his daughter her requisite two bedtime stories. She braided her hair like she always did and looked around the bedroom that would soon be hers for the foreseeable future. A smile made its way to her lips as she leaned back on the pillows. 

“I had to promise Ely your dark cherry cheesecake crêpes in the morning to get her to go to bed without a third story.” 

“You would pawn the bribe off onto me.” 

“Not my fault you’re the better cook.” 

Jon closed the door behind him and pulled his shirt off over his head, tossing it across the room to leave it hanging half in-half out of the laundry basket. Her eyes followed him across the room to the dresser. He pulled open the second drawer from the top and changed out of his jeans into pajama pants before joining her on the bed. He leaned over and kissed her lightly, “I love you.” 

“I love you too Jon Snow.” 

“What made you decide to move in? You seemed a little hesitant when I asked.”   
She let him settle back onto his pillows and shifted so that she had a thigh on either side of him, “My sister-in-law has a habit of talking sense into me. She just made me see what I already knew and reminded me that just because something scares me, doesn’t mean it can’t be good for me.” 

He stroked a hand gently up and down her side, “I want this to be good for us, but I also don’t want you to feel like anything is going to change if you don’t. I want you to be sure about this move.” 

She smiled down at him and brushed her nose gently against his, “I’m sure. You and Elyanna are the two best things that have happened to me in a long time. I want us to take this next step.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the ever lovely sansapotter was super helpful for this latest chapter. Thanks boo!


	12. Day 108: Strawberries and Pineapples

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sansa along with her siblings managed to get the kitchen unpacked along with a box or two in the living room before everyone left that night. She waved goodbye to them as Arya’s car started down the driveway. She was incredibly lucky to have the family she did that was willing to help her move into her new home.

Sansa balanced a box of kitchen supplies on her hip while she shut the trunk of her car with the other. Arya and Rickon came bounding down the stairs and took two boxes from the moving truck, back into the house. 

“Anything else in your car, babe?” 

She adjusted the box in her arms, “Just my mixer, I think. Do you mind grabbing it? I think Arya and Rickon grabbed the last of my boxes from the moving truck.” 

“Of course.” 

“Just be careful. Dad got that one for me when I graduated.” 

Jon laughed, “I’ll be the most careful.” He kissed her cheek gently and grabbed the mixer from the backseat of the car and followed her up the stairs. 

“I’m sad Ely is with her mom this weekend. She was so excited about me moving in.” 

“It’ll be a nice surprise for her when she gets home from Ygritte’s though,” Jon assured her. 

Sansa smiled and nodded, “Yeah. You’re right.” 

Sansa set her box down on the counter next to the coffee maker. He set the mixer down in the spot they’d cleared off for it earlier that day. She wiped her hands off on the back of her jean shorts, moving over to where Jon was leaning against the sink. 

Her thumbs found the belt loops on his jeans and his hands found her waist, tugging her close. She kissed him lightly and he deepened the kiss in return. 

“Ugh, come on, sis. I agreed to help for pizza, not mental scarring.” 

She laughed and turned around, leaning back against Jon’s chest, “Oh hush Rickon, you’ll get your pizza.” 

Arya nudged Rickon with her hip, “Be nice, Ric. Let your big sister be happy. You owe her. She’s the one who taught you how to drive when no one else was willing to.” 

Rickon rolled his eyes and grumbled, “Not like anyone was more willing to teach you to drive…”

She felt Jon’s nose nuzzle lightly at the spot just behind her ear before pressing a kiss there, “I’m gonna order that pizza. You all okay to start unpacking while I check on the guys?” 

She gave his arms a gentle squeeze before stepping away, “I think we can manage. Don’t forget to remind Grenn that he offered to help set up my bookcases in the office.” 

Jon chuckled, “I would never.” He kissed the top of her head and thanked her siblings before pulling his phone out to order pizza for them while he walked to check on the guys working in the strawberry patches. 

Sansa along with her siblings managed to get the kitchen unpacked along with a box or two in the living room before everyone left that night. She waved goodbye to them as Arya’s car started down the driveway. She was incredibly lucky to have the family she did that was willing to help her move into her new home. 

“Bookshelves are all up, Sansa. Have a good night,” Grenn said, passing her on his way to the door. 

“Thank you Grenn, goodnight. Say hello to Pyp for me.” 

“Will do. See you tomorrow.” 

Sansa started to fix danishes and coffee for the guys on their late mornings, so she knew most of them well enough by now.

“See you.” 

She found Jon in the living room sifting through one of her boxes of pictures, “Finding anything interesting, love?” 

Jon turned a picture towards her, “Is this Harrion?” 

She moved closer and plucked the frame from his hand, “It is. Robb was away on business the week he was born so I was staying with Alys to keep an eye on her and she went into labor in the middle of the night. By the time we got ahold of Robb, Harrion had already been born and I got to cut the cord. He’s been my little buddy ever since. He loves to run around with my siblings, but when we’re all together, he likes to crawl into my lap when we watch movies and he always sits beside me at dinner. He helps me in the kitchen like Elyanna likes to.” 

He smiled, “I like learning new things about you.”

“Well, you’ll have plenty of time to do that now.” 

She set the frame back into the box and held her hand out to Jon. He took it and they moved to sit on the couch. She curled up next to him, “Remind me to bake Grenn something special for putting those bookcases up. I’ll do it tomorrow before I start working on my boxes.” 

“He’d appreciate that.” 

Jon pressed a kiss to the top of her head and turned the TV on to the History channel, which had become their favorite to watch together since she started staying over regularly. 

Once their documentary on Civil War hauntings in the deep south was finished, Sansa and Jon made their way up to their bedroom. They changed, settled into bed, and turned the TV onto a random channel. She leaned back against his chest and he ran his hand gently up and down her arm.

“We are officially a cohabitating couple…” she mused.

“That we are…are you happy?” 

She nodded, “Very.” 

“Not regretting the long drive you’ll have to take into town?” 

She shook her head, “No way. I get to wake up next to you every morning and do cute hairstyles for Ely before she goes to school, that’s all so much better than a short commute to the bakery.”

His nose brushed gently against hers before he leaned in to kiss her again, “I love Sansa Stark.” 

“And I you, Jon Snow,” She giggled softly and shifted off of him onto her side of the bed, “I have baking to do in the morning to thank everyone for helping.” 

Jon turned their bedside lamp off, pulling her into his side, kissing her shoulder lightly, “Night.” 

“Good night,” she whispered.

~~~~

Sansa woke up early the next morning to make coffee and eat breakfast before she got to baking a layered pound cake with a whipped cream frosting with strawberry filling that she knew Grenn was fond of. She put aside a plate of food for Jon in the warm oven covered in aluminum foil. She plugged her mixer in and started to gather the ingredients she needed from around the kitchen. While the batter mixed, she went out to the garden and picked some of the ripe strawberries that were growing in the garden. 

She returned to the kitchen to wash and take the stems from the berries to find Jon eating his breakfast at the island, dressed for the day.

“What kind of cake are you making?” he asked between bites. 

“My layered strawberry and cream pound cake that I made for that picnic,” she said over her shoulder from the sink. 

“Grenn is a big fan of that one. I think he ate half of that cake that day.” 

She laughed, “Exactly why I’m making it to thank him.” 

They talked while she worked on the filling for the cake and the pound cake baked in the oven. 

He left while she waited for the cake to cool and the whipped cream frosting came together in the mixer to work in the fields and help his sister with the horses. She cute the cake into even layers while the filling cooled on the counter. 

By the time the cake was finished, packed into a carrier, and her mini pineapple upside down cakes were baking in the oven, Jon and Grenn were coming in for lunch. 

“Hey guys. How’s everything in the field?” she asked. 

“Good, we’re actually ahead of the game this month, so not too stressful.” 

“I’m glad,” she kissed Jon’s cheek and gestured to the cake carrier, “that is for you whenever you go home for the night in thanks for helping with moving yesterday.” 

“Aw, Sans, you didn’t have to bake me anything. I was happy to help,” Grenn smiled, a light blush on his cheeks. 

She sat at the island across from Jon while he heated up leftovers for everyone, “I know, but I really appreciated it and I was raised to be a good housewife and that includes giving thank-yous, whether in the form of baked goods or cards.” 

Grenn laughed and sat down with a glass of water next to her, “Well, thank you.” 

She patted his arm and took her plate from Jon before digging in. It was hard to believe that just over three months ago, she was single and living in her apartment alone. Sometimes it was even more crazy to think that a simple need to get fruit from a different produce stand would lead her to this moment. Sansa never considered the possibility of another romance in her life after the end of her engagement with Willas, but the best things in life happen when you’re least expecting it. 

If someone told her just a couple months ago, that this was her life now, she would have laughed in their face and continued on her way. Now, she couldn’t ask for anything better than her sweet, stupidly attractive produce farmer with a heart of gold and his precocious, amazing little girl who she adored.


	13. Epilogue: Day 1068: Apricots and Cranberries

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Her life wasn’t always easy and sometimes her past still haunted her, but her fiance and their family more than made up for it. They made even her darkest days bearable.

Sansa sighed and sat up in bed. She rubbed sleep from her eyes and got out of the bed to pad mere feet to the bassinet that sat next to the new rocking chair where her comfy papasan chair had sat only a couple months ago. She lifted the wailing 2-week old out of the bassinet and moved to the bed. 

She took a seat carefully, trying not to wake her fiancé. She cradled the baby and carefully unhooked her nursing tank top before shifting her hold and helping the infant get a good latch. She leaned back and let herself focus on this bonding time with her baby instead of how close to her alarm going off it was. 

The bed shifted to her left and she glanced over at Jon who was watching them silently. She hated to wake him when he had to be in the fields earlier than normal and a meeting in town with one of the local grocers to talk about renewing the contract he’d signed with them last year. 

“Sorry love, didn’t mean with wake you,” she whispered. 

“Don’t worry about it San. Years of being the only one in the house with Ely have tuned my ears to the sound of crying.” 

She laughed softly and carefully unlatched the baby before switching side, “Well, I’m just glad this little one isn’t falling asleep tonight. I have to be up to bake for Ely’s class in a couple hours.” 

Jon smiled and kissed her shoulder softly, “You’re a regular wonder woman, babe.” 

“Go back to sleep.” 

She caressed his cheek lovingly with her hand that wasn’t busy with the baby. He rolled back over and she could tell he was back asleep only a minute or two later. She could hardly believe that she had ever thought that Jon would be anything but over the moon about her being pregnant.

~~~~

That morning over 7 months ago when she’d sat on the edge of the garden tub in Margaery and Arianne’s shared bathroom, terrified and staring down in shock at the positive pregnancy test in her hands. Her first thought was that it had to be a false positive. There was no way she could be pregnant. 

Except there was, since she and Jon got engaged three months ago, they’d been less than careful. Nowhere near careful really and the six other positive tests plus the one in her hands was proof of that. 

“I think it’s positive Sans. There’s no way all seven tests are false positives,” Marg told her gently. 

She’d been so incredibly nervous to tell Jon and put off telling him for weeks after she found out. Until she had her first prenatal visit with her OB/GYN and had a sonogram and a positive blood test results confirming the pregnancy in her hands, telling her that this was all very, very real.

She’d baked a cranberry tart topped with peaches and cooked chicken kiev for him that night, two of her recipes that were quickly becoming his favorites. Though the baby made its distaste for the smells related to the dish well known. 

She left the sonogram and the paper with her lab draw results into an envelope with his name written in her shakiest cursive ever on the front beside his plate. When he came in from dropping Elyanna off at his parents’ place for the next couple days, she was sitting in the dining room, sipping on her water. 

She heard his bag drop next to the door and him moving into the dining room, he placed a kiss on her cheek, “Hey babe.” 

“Hey, hungry?” 

“Yeah. I’m starving.” He moved to the spot across from hers and sat down. She watched his brow furrow and him pick up the card. 

“What’s this?” he asked. 

“Just open it. You’ll see.” 

She traced shapes in the condensation on her glass as he opened the envelope. He pulled out the lab results first, looking over it. He looked up at her and she smiled, “There’s something else in there.” 

He put the paper down to pull out the sonogram. He looked between the picture and her several times before setting down. 

“You’re..we’re gonna…” 

Sansa nodded, “Yeah. I’m about 6 weeks. We’re gonna have a baby…” 

He stood and she did too, Jon moving around the table. He scooped her up in a hug and kissed her on the cheek softly. 

“We’re having a baby…” he murmured. “Wow.” 

She laughed softly, “I hope that’s a good wow.” 

“Absolutely.” He kissed her passionately and pulled back, stroking her cheek with his thumb lightly. 

She smiled softly, “How are we gonna tell Ely?” 

“I think as soon as she gets back from my parents’ place.” 

She nodded, “Absolutely.” 

“What about your family?” he asked. 

“As soon as Arya and Gendry are back from their honeymoon, I already called my Mom to help me set up a weekend at the house. Told her I wanted to spend some time with everyone.” 

He smiled and nodded, “Sounds good.” 

Sansa kissed him, “You know, I was scared you’d be angry or...something.” 

Jon shook his head, “I could never. This is amazing. We’re having a baby…” 

They kissed and enjoyed the glow of the moment before they were finally able to break away from each other to eat. 

They spent the rest of the night before bed on the couch with the TV on low in the background, eating tart, and discussing turning the guest room closest to their bedroom into a nursery.

~~~~

Telling Elyanna had been the easiest part. She was thrilled, if not a little confused at first, about being a big sister. They’d made her favorite breakfast and presented her with a “World’s Best Big Sister” shirt in a neatly wrapped gift box. Once she’d grasped the concept and eaten her breakfast, all she wanted to do was ask questions about the baby and if it would be sleeping in her room. Was it going to cry? How long before the baby would be able to color with her? Was it a girl? She really wanted the baby to be a girl. She would whisper that “she absolutely couldn’t bear a baby brother, so you better be a girl” to Sansa’s stomach any chance she could get. 

Her family and Jon’s were arguably almost as easy. Their parents were wary at first, but once they had time to process, they were happy for the couple. Her siblings were all too excited for another niece or nephew to spoil and dote on. Jon’s brother and sister just teased about how Jon was lucky that Sansa was such a good partner, because if this baby was anything like Elyanna, he was going to have his hands full. Rhaenys hugged her tight and whispered into her ear, “I always knew you two would end up here. I can’t wait to meet the little one.” Aegon gave her a wink and a double thumbs up, which was about as touchy feely as he would ever be. 

Ygritte was the one they put off telling. Jon argued that she really had no business knowing. This was their baby, not hers. Sansa was insistent though. She was, after all, Elyanna’s mother and she felt that she at least deserved a heads up. Also, if they’d told her about the engagement, then they couldn’t very well not tell her about this. 

They invited Ygritte to lunch instead of just their usual afternoon hand-off for her weekends with Ely. She’d accepted hesitantly and Sansa was in a flurry making sure everything was perfect. She baked Ygritte’s favorite pie (cherry) and made a one pan honey lemon chicken with asparagus and fingerling potatoes for lunch. Unfortunately this reveal was coming a lot later she would have liked, when they’d told their families, she’d only been 2 months along and now she was edging towards her second trimester and showing more. She’d tried her best to hide it with a flowy peasant top and stretchy pants, hoping Ygritte would just assume she’d put on some weight. 

Lunch went okay from Ygritte’s arrival until Sansa sets the pie down on the table. Ely’s mother furrows her brow and leans back in her chair, “Okay...what’s going on here? You baked my favorite pie. You guys have something else to tell me.” 

Sansa and Jon shared a look before he nods, “Yeah, we do…uh, well, we, I mean...Sansa...well” 

She shakes her head and turns to Sansa, “Can you tell me? He’s obviously having a moment.” 

“Well what Jon is trying to say is that, I’m pregnant. We’re having a baby,” she tells her. 

There are several moments of silence and the three share looks. Sansa isn’t sure if the feeling that is stirring in the pit of her stomach is nervousness or nausea. 

“Are you guys happy about it?” she asks. 

Sansa nods, “We’re very happy and Ely is excited too. Aren’t you Ely?” 

Elyanna nods, “I’m gonna be a big sister!” 

Ygritte laughs softly, “Then I’m happy for you guys. How far along are you?” 

“Almost four months,” Sansa tells her. 

They dive into conversation about the pregnancy and wedding planning over slices of cherry pie. Later when Ely leaves with Ygritte, Sansa and Jon spend the rest of the day cuddled up in their bed as much as possible. 

“See, not so bad. She was even happy for us,” Sansa muses, resting against his chest. 

Jon presses a kiss to the top of her head, “You were right, I was wrong. Forgive me?” 

“Always.” 

Over the next couple months, the pregnancy went fabulously and Arrana Naerys Snow was born healthy and perfect. She completed their little family and Sansa couldn’t have imagined a better day than when everyone got to meet their baby. She was a representation of their love and all the things she never thought she’d get to have.

~~~~

Sansa burped Arrana after she was finished feeding her and made sure she was asleep before she lay her back down in her bassinet. She rejoined Jon in their bed and fell asleep as quickly as she could these days. 

Her alarm went off and she shut it off so it wouldn’t wake the baby. She headed downstairs to bake the apricot-white chocolate cookies she promised she’d bake for Elyanna’s class. She made the dough last night and put it on sheet pans before going to bed last night, so all she had to do was pop them into the oven. She put the cookies in the oven and started on breakfast for herself and Ely. She finished and took the cookies out to cool before going to wake Elyanna. 

She left her to get dressed while she went to get Arrana, who was now awake and crying for a diaper change and feeding. She settled Arrana got her strapped into her carrier before making sure Ely had her teeth brushed and hair brushed. 

They ate breakfast and packed up the cookies before Sansa got everyone situated in the car to drive Elyanna to school. As she sat in her new, multiple kid-friendly SUV and watching Elyanna be led into school by one of the teachers, cookies in hand, she was reminded of just how much she loved being a mom. She loved every moment of it. 

Her life wasn’t always easy and sometimes her past still haunted her, but her fiance and their family more than made up for it. They made even her darkest days bearable.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to thank everyone who has been on this ride for the last two years with me! I was so nervous when I started this project and was so surprised by how warmly it was received and all the support I got. Thank you all so so much for the last two years! I love you all!!


End file.
